Blind To Notice
by Tellytubby101
Summary: The story of the ten times Hatake Kakashi noticed Umino Iruka. And the ten times he saw something inexplicable... that made him fall in love. Slight AU. Shounen-ai.
1. Initial Glance

_**Blind To Notice.**_

**A/N: In clarification, **_**noticing**_** isn't really the same as **_**seeing**_**. Like... have you ever realized that you've looked and talked to that boy in class for three years running, but it was only last autumn that you **_**noticed**_** he**** was actually really adorable and cute? ^-^ So I'm writing down the big **_**noticeable**_** moments of Kakashi/Iruka interaction.**

**I wrote this first chapter a while back, and I've outlined the others. Honestly though? I'm not totally appeased by this initial chapter, 'cause it's a bit clichéd. But please stay tuned for the later chapters; I particularly like **_**those**_**. ^.^**

**Warning: eventually very blatant shounen-ai. **

**Disclaimer: Masashi Kishimoto owns all Naruto related stuff. Though I doubt he'd want to claim responsibility for some of the fanfiction you see on this site. :-)**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

The first time Kakashi noticed Iruka was also the first time he was forced to take stock on how he wrote mission reports. The masked man was overwhelmingly tired as he marched wearily into the mission room, having just finished a particularly difficult A-rank mission, complications popping up one after another, but not severe enough to class it S-rank. Though he didn't need the money, it was the principal of the matter that irked Kakashi. Although the client in the end paid only for an A-rank mission, it was practically an S-rank.

_Damn it all_, he thought to himself as he all but threw his sloppily written report to the first manned desk he saw. Without even exchanging basic pleasantries to the chuunin on duty, he turned to go home and clean up. The mud clinging to his clothes was beginning to harden and the overall dirt and grime was uncomfortable. At least there wasn't much blood staining his clothes.

If he had not come in at dusk, when the room was at its most quiet and peaceful, the time where most ninja were leaving to do their duty instead of returning to report, he may have missed the quiet noise that was impossible to ignore otherwise; the condescending noise of someone clearing their throat in preparation to speak.

Spinning around slowly, Kakashi stared with one droopy eye at the young man sitting calmly behind the mahogany desk. As fatigued and worn down as the Copy-Nin was, he—like any good ninja was supposed to—was still able to immediately pick up and catalogue a few main points about the man: young, early-twenties; rich, coffee coloured hair; tanned, brown skin; and darker brown eyes; such simplicity in a human would have left him wholly forgettable if it were not for the outstanding scar stretching from one side of his cheek to the other, crossing and marring the bridge of his nose. Ironic that this imperfection was what made him unique.

"Yes?" asked Kakashi irritably, in no mood to play celebrity to a chuunin surprised to meet the legendary Copy-Nin. Fame was merely an inconvenient side-dish to most of the powerful and talented ninja, especially those gifted with rare traits like the Sharingan.

But the chuunin brought up no such thing. Instead he barked politely, "This report is unacceptable and will not be filed in such a state. Please return tomorrow with another copy." His hand was holding out the tattered scroll, and once he saw that his message had been received, looked down to finish a sentence with the pen in his other hand, as if what he just said was of little consequence.

Those few words were surprising, especially from someone of lower rank than he was. Admittedly, those who manned the desks in the mission room had every right to demand higher standards of their jounin, but there were few who did. The majority were intimidated, not looking for fights with those they couldn't stand a chance against.

The chuunin waved the scroll slightly, as if demanding Kakashi take the damn thing already. There was no tension in his shoulders, the air surrounding him bored but studious, and there was nothing in there that suggested he was questioning the work of _the_ Hatake Kakashi. _Odd_, thought the jounin, his eye now concentrating with more effort on the younger man.

"Excuse me? That scroll is perfectly fine," replied Kakashi in a monotone, too bothered and aching to even contemplate writing another one. Not that he put much effort in his first draft. It was obvious to even the most inane that the scroll was in no such condition as he claimed it was, but Kakashi had handed in worse and doubted he'd start changing his habits now.

A quiet snort escaped the chuunin, and without looking up from the form he was dutifully completing, he responded with a slightly sarcastic, "Of course it is." The jounin had been an ANBU soldier for too many years to let any emotion run across his face without allowing it, but he couldn't deny the bubble of surprise that burst in his stomach.

After signing his name with a flourish, the man finally looked up, trapping Kakashi's gaze before continuing seriously, "Filing away mission reports may seem like an inconvenient trifle for you, but for the village it is more important than most may realize. It helps with the annual accounting and an entire array of political and financial situations. So please, take the effort to make my life a little easier and write something down that doesn't look like a drunken three-year old scribbled it down with finger paint. Thank you."

Not bothering to hold up the scroll any further, the chuunin placed it on the edge of his desk for Kakashi to pick up himself, before going back to the stack of paperwork he seemed intent on completing. None of the other busy chuunin seemed to notice what was going on, caught up in work of their own, or busily conversing with jounin to try adding in last minute details to scrolls that were incomplete; not that any of the high ranking ninja were helping.

"Do you know who I am?" Kakashi asked after a brief pause, now curious and intrigued. No one who he'd just met had ever treated him like this in a long while. For now, the only conclusion he could come up with was that this new pawn in Kohona's force of hundreds, somehow did not know him. As egotistical as that thought was—the idea that there was no one who knew about his reputation that would dare stand up to him—he tested it out anyway.

"Of course I do," snapped the man sharply, his eyes glancing up to peer at Kakashi as if to make sure he hadn't gone insane. "You're Hatake Kakashi, legendary Copy-Nin, user of a thousand-jutsu, a non-Uchiha to possess the Sharingan. The son of the 'White Fang', you were once the infamous 'Hound' ANBU black-ops captain, and are notorious for wearing a mask covering the lower portion of your face. Not to mention, that shock of silver hair is hard to miss."

Kakashi stared back impassively, but a flicker of surprise flared in the older man's chest. _That was... quite an impressive array of background knowledge_, mused the ninja internally. Even though most of the information was well known throughout the village and neighboring countries, to be able to recite much of it from the top of his head was an impressive show of recollection on the younger man's part.

As if he could read the unsaid question on the jounin's face, the chuunin shrugged and explained, "Photographic memory. Nearly impossible for me to forget something."

The brown-haired man then paused and cocked his head to the side, looking as the stoic jounin for a moment before his eyes widened not with fear, but a definite glint of amusement. "You thought that I was treating you like every other jounin because I didn't know who you were, didn't you?" Despite himself, the man behind the desk let out a bark of laughter, before continuing. "Well, sorry, but I don't discriminate. To be frank, I've heard that most jounin rarely submit things up to par, and I'm going to change that. That means you, too."

Shrugging, Kakashi replied with an undercurrent of disbelief, "You'll never get every jounin to hand in neat scrolls because you want to. No one's that influential." Even the Hokage knew better than trying.

Tapping the messy scroll, the sparky chuunin reminded the jounin to pick it up before he left, and then said confidently, "Give me six months. You'll see a change before that at the very least. I can be very persuasive when I want to be." Rolling his one visible eye, Kakashi picked up the scroll and left, too bothered to continue the conversation, and clearly doubtful of the chuunin's endeavor.

"Goodbye, Hatake," followed him out as he left from a window, and as Kakashi ran, he decided to return the scroll the next morning to another ninja not so determined to keep up standards. _Give him two weeks before he breaks like every other ninja before him_, thought Kakashi indifferently. Even though the conversation was interesting, it was clear the man was naive. Jounin would never bow down to the authority of anything other than fellow jounin, ANBU soldiers or the Hokage himself.

However, two months later, he started hearing rumors of a chuunin-ranked ninja named Umino Iruka, becoming more and more infamous for somehow being able to blackmail and convince every jounin into behaving in the mission room.

Fascinating. The man he met was Umino Iruka during his first week in the mission room.

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: For the few few chapters, I intend for them to be pretty separate, capable one shots in their own right, but then I plan to haze it into a more consistent plot as the characters interact more and more. For the most part, these will be Kakashi-centric POV.**

**Feedback is encouraged; even an anonymous review will make my day. Any questions or suggestions for a later chapter? Just pass 'em through to me. :-)**


	2. Study Sessions

**A/N: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE POSITIVE FEEDBACK! I can't believe how warmly this story was received. I sort-of have a schedule planned—*snort*, I suck at schedules—but since you hit 25 reviews, I crammed to post early. I feel obliged to return the kindness. :-)**

**Oh, and alas, this is another slightly clichéd scene. At least it's a rather long chapter. Damn it, all the early introductory scene are cliché these days! *Sigh*. But I promise, they get better—in my opinion—later, when it's more original and they're both more well acquainted. **

**Disclaimer: I wonder if any actual authors write fanfiction for their stories. If none exist, then I sort-of think this disclaimer business is awfully pointless if we all know none of us own it. However, I don't own Naruto, and never will.**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

The second time that Kakashi really noticed Iruka was quite some time later, not too soon after Mizuki had been apprehended after he had tried to steal a forbidden scroll. There was nothing less than pure surprise when he had learned that it was Naruto and Iruka who had detained the man. What was more surprising was that he came into work the morning afterwards.

Iruka had been a teacher for a while now, and he was good at what he did. Morale at the Academy had risen from the new teaching regime implemented by the man himself, and the levels of passing genin students had increased as well. Mortality rates in every graduate dropped by at least 17% on average, a great feat for Kohona. Many of his fellow colleagues and teachers praised the young man, and many parents were smitten with his level of commitment. He would tutor struggling students and have them bouncing back to catch up with the others in no time.

Compassion, though a worthy human trait, made him seem to be a weaker ninja in Kakashi's eyes. He couldn't help the way he thought of the man. For some reason, it made sense that the chuunin stayed behind as a teacher and as a desk worker. Those who belong with the people cannot fight. Even someone with a temper as fiery as Iruka's could never reach their full potential in battle if they cared too much.

Then Kakashi learned of how Iruka went after the traitor by himself, desperate to clear Naruto's name from being shamed further. Apparently, Iruka had implemented a strong genjutsu, effectively confusing Mizuki momentarily to gain precious moments for Naruto. Iruka had known Mizuki since childhood, so to create an illusion strong enough to confound one of their familiar chakra signals took delicate skill. Taking a large throwing star to the back, having it land mere inches from his heart; living through such an experience was no easy feat for anyone. In more ways than people realized, that man was a survivor.

But what raised Iruka's status in Kakashi's personal view was how strongly Iruka attempted to protect and guard Naruto. Leave no team member behind – his actions reflected that line of thought. In a way, Iruka's caring side became his strength. Obito taught him that to care was important, but sometimes he needed a jolt to fully remember the message.

Yet even strength shouldn't have allowed him to start walking and talking so soon after the event. The medic-nin had prescribed at least a week's worth of bed rest, but Iruka, as stubborn as he was, went to work anyway, not liking the idea that _anyone _was worrying about him in the least. However, when a giant throwing star misses your spinal cord by centimeters, Kakashi thought that people had a right to fuss a little. Not that Iruka agreed. He went in to work, thinking it'd a normal day, regardless of the wound on his back.

But surprise, surprise: the ninja filling in for his class, doing a very sloppy job of it too, was Hatake Kakashi. While the main classes of the academy were closed now with the graduations over and done with, this was a collection of younger students from earlier grades struggling, and thus sent for the summer crash course Iruka held. Though the class was smaller than the norm, Kakashi had no real skill in keeping them quiet, long since giving up and letting them run free with only a wary gaze of supervision keeping them from killing one another.

Strangely, Iruka took it all in his stride, walking over to tell Kakashi that his services would no longer be needed. Covered with his sturdy chuunin uniform, it wasn't enough to hide the sterile white bandages poking out of his shirt, reaching up to the base of his neck; Kakashi knew from observations and personal experiences that torso wounds took a lot of wrapping to keep the pressure constant.

The children who he'd given up controlling early on, quickly sighted their usual teacher and decidedly horded around him, babbling excitedly about the rumors quickly spreading about his earlier success. They stopped his progress about halfway across the room, and the jounin watched with undisguised mirth as Iruka tried to answer all the questions his students threw his way while keeping the more worried from clutching at the more tender parts of his legs and arms.

Only with a grace accumulated from years of practice and experience did Iruka handle his overly affectionate group of kids, calming them down, promising them the entire recount another time, first needing to speak to their substitute. Eventually, most of them settled into their seats, the roar changing into a quiet murmur soon enough. Kakashi was slightly annoyed that Iruka accomplished within minutes what he couldn't do in over an hour without resorting to violence; an entire gathering peaceful children. Or as much peace that could be brought when a bunch of ninja-wannabes were brought together in one confided space.

Pausing to berate two boys for trying to throw a kunai at a young girl in the corner, Iruka finally made his way over to Kakashi. They both stepped into the corner and lowered their voices; the children were much too busy playing games at their desks or attempting to get up to some mischief to notice the conversation. They were young pre-genin, and would soon learn how to listen to everything at once while multi-tasking. But for now, they were fairly harmless children, almost pathetic in the category of reconnaissance.

"Hatake, while I appreciate the upper-echelons sending someone to cover for me, I don't need to be babied. I can walk alright, so I can take class for today. Anyway, I don't doubt that you have something better to do for today."

"Like what?"

"How about you look after your pet cat?"

"What pet cat?"

A laugh escaped Iruka. "Knew it. A few weeks back, I remember how you gave me the excuse, 'I was busy feeding my cat' as a reasoning to the half-a-dozen late scrolls you decided to haphazardly dump on me."

"Oops. My bad. Honest mistake, of course."

"If that's the case, why'd you teleport out of the room faster than someone could blink?"

"Good instincts?"

The teacher eyed him skeptically before sighing. "Don't do it again."

A signature grin flittered over the jounin's face. "Ahh, good man. Letting by-gones be by-gones."

"Right. Now, how about you let me take the class?"

"Nah, it's okay. Iruka, while your concern for your students is quite endearing a trait for a mother hen, you must realize that you're meant to be in bed. For a week, I've heard," admonished Kakashi lightly, shrugging indifferently, but one clear eye intent with observing the man of further injury. There was a slight tang of rustic blood in the air, faded but fresh enough, and apart from that and the most slight of limps, Iruka was appearing to be in fairly good condition.

"Hatake—" Iruka started to growl, before being cut off by Kakashi.

"Call me 'Kakashi', please. Screw manners and protocol. I don't like being called by my surname. It's too formal." What Kakashi didn't reveal was that it reminded him of his father too much. But Iruka didn't need to know that.

"Alright then," replied Iruka slowly. "Kakashi... if you don't want me to kick you in the groin, don't ever refer to me as a 'mother hen' again. I don't care if you have a threatening reputation; I'd still get you somehow."

A slender brow raised in question at the amusing threat. "I'd like to see you try." He waited for some reaction from the chuunin, but all the man did was release a slow smile that crinkled the scar branding his face. The smile was more like a smirk, and a shifty, dangerous one at that.

"If I can catch the Hokage and his ANBU protectors off-guard," chuckled the teacher quietly, "I think I can handle one overzealous special-jounin."

"You kicked the Hokage in the groin?" Kakashi had trouble envisioning the conditions. And he was surprised at the revelation that Iruka outsmarted the Hokage's ANBU guards. That was nothing to smirk at—hiding from ANBU was difficult as hell.

"No! I'm never that blatant in my revenge. I do more subtle pranks. No one ever realizes that having a low chakra reserve is good for infiltration. For example," started Iruka with a wider, more authentic smile, "the Hokage one day inexplicitly couldn't pick up any of the scrolls in his room. They would fly from his grasp before he could do anything. He made a huge mess of his office by chasing them around."

Kakashi couldn't help it; a small laugh escaped him at the thought. "How the hell did you manage that?"

"I'm one of the main people in the mission room," pointed Iruka out before catching a stray training kunai from mid-air, a wayward projectile of one of his students. "I have clearance to many scrolls. It was all a matter of which ones to rig with thin chakra string and the right genjutsu to put on the Hokage."

"You," repeated Kakashi with thinly veiled surprise, "casted an illusion on the Hokage?"

"Everyone notices the big illusions, but I did a small one on the Hokage affecting his depth perception and I dragged his concept of time a few seconds back; and I only made it work in his office," confessed Iruka modestly, fiddling with the blade in his hands. "So when the chakra strings pulled the scrolls from his hands, his fast reflexes would've missed them and he'd think them faster than they really were."

"I bet he loved that," Kakashi commented, scratching his nose through his mask.

"He didn't," Iruka replied, laughing from the memory. "It took him three days to finally cough up an adequate apology, but in the end, I deactivated the trap and things were back to normal."

"If you don't mind my asking, what did the Hokage, as honorable as we all know he is," Kakashi smirked with a respectful teasing lilt to his voice, "do to deserve such a treatment?"

"He kept pestering me to apply for the jounin exams," Iruka shrugged. "No matter how many times I declined, he kept asking. Thankfully, after that prank he stopped. Sort of. But if he doesn't ask every other day, then I'm happy."

"The Hokage himself wants you to become a jounin?" The Copy-Nin knew that the teacher was well-schooled in the basics, but it baffled him that someone thought him to be capable of more. He may not have known the young man that much, but he couldn't recall anything particularly exemplary about his skills... then again, he just heard that his stealth surpassed the Hokage and his guards, so maybe he didn't know all the facts just yet.

The teacher glared without real anger at the other, before retorting, "Don't have to sound so surprised."

Shrugging, Kakashi replied non-apologetically, "Just am."

A heavy sigh. "I'm not cut out to be a jounin, and won't apply unless the Hokage himself directly orders me to. But he won't, and I'm very grateful for that," Iruka confessed without embarrassment. "Assassinations and other dangerous jobs are classified A-rank. I've done A-ranks before, of course, but I've never liked them. As a chuunin, I'm not expected to do them regularly. If I changed to jounin, I'd have to face that and more."

"Is it you can't do them, or you won't?"

"I can't. The Hokage thinks too much of me. I'm not that skilled. My psych analysis also doesn't recommend me for heavy field work; wrong mindset for that. Not to mention, I can do more for Kohona here."

"Hmm," mused Kakashi quietly. "We do have a shortage of jounin—"

"We always seem to have a shortage of jounin," pointed Iruka out quickly. _Because they die so often_, was left unsaid.

"Yes," agreed Kakashi before continuing, "and so it'd be good to have another join the ranks. Especially one with the Hokage's recommendation."

"No," stated Iruka firmly. "Don't press me on this."

"But—" protested Kakashi.

"No." The man's tone held no room for argument. Suddenly a smile brightened his face, and with his usual cheery voice, he exclaimed, "Well, Kakashi, thank you for helping me this morning, but I can take it from here now."

Kakashi's shoulders slumped and he took up his relaxed stance once more. It wasn't his place to convince a man to take up a career so full of blood and death, and if the leader of the village himself couldn't change the man's opinion, he doubted that some jounin could. Instead of fighting further, he slipped his hand into the hidden pocket inside his vest, tugging out a faded, worn, orange-bound novel, just as Iruka's attention was brought back to the students, who were becoming more and more rowdy, taking full advantage of the lack of real supervision.

Yelling sharply, bringing all eyes to his face, Iruka ordered, "Silence, students! All pre-genin return to their seats immediately." Most were intelligent enough to hear the threatening undertone in their elder's voice, so they hurried to their designated places, quieting down to a dull murmur. A few boys, however, ignored Iruka, and were still trying their hand at perfecting their aim of throwing stars.

There was a faint whistle the buzzed through the air, and Kakashi paused, lifting his one free eye up to the classroom, and was amazed to see a boy's sleeve pinned to the wall from a kunai ram-rod straight against the wall and inches from his wrist, a weapon of his own handing limply from his fingers in surprise. Iruka cleared his throat, stern eyes on the child.

"If you can't throw with accuracy like that, don't you dare try throw another blade in this classroom. I let you off earlier because I was busy. Don't mistake that I would do that twice," admonished Iruka sternly, his voice full of authority. Only Kakashi noticed the slight wince Iruka displayed, most likely from pain in using his shoulder so soon after injury.

Kakashi spared a thought, thinking that if Iruka ever wanted to be a jounin, he'd do well as the team-leader in most three-man cells, his calm order a good trait in battle.

"Kakashi, if you so wish, you may leave now," muttered Iruka quietly, still glaring at the huddle of boys in the corner as they scuttled into their seats. The last boy was having trouble removing the kunai embedded so firmly into the plasterwork of the wall, but he managed it in the end with a faint squeak of embarrassment intermingled with relief.

"Nah, I'll stay and give you a hand," started Kakashi again, still intent of letting the man rest some.

Iruka smiled. "In that case, remind me to talk to you at lunch. I've heard that you're accepting a genin cell this year. I'd like to go over some details with you. There are two boys I'm assigning you, and they are... quite special."

Even though Kakashi smiled and nodded, he couldn't help but think, _Special or not, they'll fail like every other genin team I've had._

Iruka turned around to speak some more, but his throat seemed to close shut as his eyes closed in on the book in Kakashi's grasp. Brown eyes narrowed threateningly, and Kakashi belatedly realized his error, and he winced as he braced for the outburst he knew was coming. But he was astounded to see that, in fact, the man simply handed him a neatly folded piece of parchment to slip over the book as a blank dust cover.

"Aren't you mad?" questioned Kakashi tentatively, worried whether there was some hidden trap in the paper. Kakashi had heard rumors, one of many, that Iruka had absolutely chewed out a jounin a few days prior for speaking about sex in front of a group of young, impressionable pre-genin. Reading erotica in front of an entire class of children should have incited a much more scary reaction.

"Now, now," smirked Iruka with a wicked glint in his eye. "The children aren't crash hot at reading small font from a distance, unobservant brats that they are, so I have no real reason or inclination to keep you from reading about Yuki's promiscuous adventures with the manor's servant, now do I?"

Kakashi's jaw nearly dropped_. Iruka had read...? He had...? No way in the world... _A sly wink from the chuunin, and Iruka turned around to begin the lesson, completely level-headed and professional. Definitely not grinning at the slightly widened eye of the expert ninja standing behind him.

"Oh, and Kakashi?" added Iruka in a lull in the class filled only with the noise of scratching pens almost as an afterthought.

"Hmm?"

"You really need to branch out," murmured the younger man in a sultry voice. "Jiraiya isn't the only good writer of that particular genre, you know." Kakashi couldn't stop his jaw dropping that time, reeling from the change in the other man's demeanor. Watching him lecture to his students on safety protocol, he never ever would have thought that Iruka could've spoken in a voice like that...

Enthralling. One conversation and Kakashi's view of the man had completely turned upside-down.

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: Upon re-reading Naruto vol. one, I noticed that for a few panels, Iruka actually was wearing bandages, and he was up and about for a while after the attack. Huh. You'd think he'd be in pain or something, but there he was casually talking to the Hokage in chapter two. Either he was drugged to the max, or he's just awesome like that. Or, dare I say it; he's bloody ninja like that!**

**Comments? Anonymous or signed-in reviews = love; or hate, if you randomly flame me. Whatever floats your boat. I think I'll keep up the 25-review to post tradition. Note: this is not blackmail. I will post whether or not it hits the quota. Just not as fast, but I'll keep to my tentatively planned schedule. **

**To anonymous reviewer, **_**To Lazy To Log In**_**: Kakashi walking in on Iruka naked is certainly an interesting concept for a chapter—and it'd definitely grab his attention—but I don't think I can make it work. Know that you made me laugh like a madwoman, however.**


	3. Entertaining Spar

**A/N: This was fun and painful to write. Fights scenes are always like that. I empathize too much with the characters when they get hurt.**

**By the way, there'll be some teeny hints of Anko/Ibiki, if you squint for it. Don't like it, don't squint. Easy as pie.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Don't sue.**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

The third time Kakashi laid eyes on a particular chuunin was when he was when he was out looking for Mitarashi Anko. Iruka was with her and they were sparring quite fiercely before Kakashi stumbled across them. Bored and intrigued, Kakashi was in no rush to stop the fight, so he watched the events pass lazily from a distance.

Getting comfortable in a nearby tree, Kakashi didn't bother to conceal his chakra signal entirely, but he muted its strength to appear less noticeable. Though the leaves, he had a fairly good view of the grounds, even if some areas were blocked by thicker branches.

He wasn't wholly surprised to find Anko sparring, fighting with another ninja in the training grounds—after all, this was the first place Kakashi came to look for her when the Hokage informed him that he needed to find her because they were soon going to go on a joint S-rank mission together. Kakashi knew of the young woman's favored tendencies to fight and train whenever she had the time and energy spare.

Maybe she needed to prove that her worth as a ninja didn't come solely from her past connection of being one of the few surviving students of Orochimaru.

Anyway, he _was_ surprised to see her face off with a chuunin, and Umino Iruka, no less! Someone of her caliber surely wouldn't break a sweat with someone ranking lower than her—

_CRR-AACK!_

When one of Iruka's deft blows passed Anko's defensives, the resounding crack from his hand slamming against her ribcage was enough to even make Kakashi flinch minutely. Anko, on the other hand, barely stumbled back before snarling fiercely, her arm hugging her midsection tightly in an effort to contain the startling shock of brief pain, and then she threw herself back into the fray faster than one would have thought possible. Sometimes it paid to wear half-transparent chain mail around: it was challenging to land really hard blows to her like that without making your own hand ache a bit too.

Iruka smoothly dodged her roundhouse kick before hastily blocking a well aimed punch to the side of his head with his forearms. As he tried to retaliate with a closed fist of his own, he was stopped as Anko slid her feet beneath him, trying to knock him to the ground. Faster than her, he stabilized his position, but for gaining better footing, he left a clear opening which he did not seem to notice.

The purple-haired woman took advantage of her opponent's distraction to pull out a few throwing stars, pitching several in rapid succession at Iruka, a few missing the target, but one or two found its mark with a disturbingly wet _THWACK_ noise. Blood started to seep through the wound, but no one paid it much attention. In the world of experienced ninja, a cut like that was mere child's play, nothing to fret or worry about. Five minutes with chakra would heal them without even a scar to remember it with.

One of the airborne blades managed to slice Iruka's hair tie off, his long strands of brown hair framing his face, slightly sticky with perspiration. It didn't faze Iruka though.

Panting, the young chuunin skidded back a few feet, slowing himself with chakra sent to his feet, taking a moment to reanalyze the situation. Suddenly, a wicked grin lit up his features and Anko scowled at the expression. Kakashi watched, fascinated, as Iruka let loose a sudden, intense burst of chakra from the soles of his feet, so much so that it was visible to the naked eye, and with the force of the push, the teacher was sent high upward, shooting rapidly upwards, now high above a startled opponent.

Three sharpened kunai were flung down, each landing scant feet away from Anko's feet as she scurried out of their direct line of attack. Only a second later did she belatedly notice the exploding tags connected to the handles. When they burst in a whirl of sparks and fire, Anko was forced to spin, jump and roll away, her hair missing the wildly flicking tongues of flame by millimeters.

Her escape left her disorientated enough that Iruka was able to hurl a throwing star straight at her chest, only to have it bounce off the metal chains of her armor. Anko's eyes darted wildly to the right, the direction the weapon came from, but when the heard the quiet breathing to her left did she turn around in time to block a heavy blow aimed at her head.

Iruka was gasping for air, worn down by the sparring, the wound in his side tingling, but he held firm as he tried to press his arms down on Anko, trying to win by brute strength. Thing was, brute strength was never his forte. Umino's style was a more subtle cunning that many ninja lacked. Like his trick with the throwing star, a weapon he manipulated with chakra strings to give the impression he was on the other side of his adversary.

Soon enough, Anko summoned more than enough energy to push Iruka back several feet before moving faster than any eye could see and grabbing one of Iruka's arms, and pinning it behind his back. Kakashi watched as the chuunin moved without even wasting time to blink, twisting around awkwardly to turn the tables on the formidable jounin.

Just as he was using her strength against her, to throw Anko up high over himself before slamming her down onto the hard soil, she grabbed his arm and dug her nails in, making Iruka wince, his mouth frowning at the action. With that, Anko ran head first into Iruka, tackling him down into the dirt, cushioning her own fall with his body.

When the dust cleared, Anko was sitting above Iruka, both arms pinned behind his back as he lay face first in the dirt, her hand holding a kunai loosely to his neck. Both combatants were sweaty, breathing shallowly, and their eyes seemed to hold a glint of adrenalin-charged excitement.

"Damn, Iruka, that was close," chuckled Anko breathlessly as she re-holstered her weapon. "Almost lost. To think, I was almost beaten by some Nancy-boy chuunin like you!"

By the smile and muffled snicker coming from Iruka, Kakashi thought it was safe to say that there wasn't any bad blood between the two. Anko was harsh sometimes, but it was clear that Iruka somehow knew her well enough that he saw beneath the iron-hard facade she put up. The battle was immensely entertaining, and Kakashi was glad to have caught the end of it.

Iruka snorted good-naturedly, before starting to shift and struggle under the girl's weight in an effort to get free.

"Really," complained Iruka, "maybe it's getting easier to kick your ass because it's getting so big. Why are you so damn heavy?"

Kakashi's eyes widened at the comment. There were some things that female ninja were paranoid about, and Iruka just touched one of those subjects.

"Hey!" exclaimed Anko with fake anger, a loud thump echoing from the trees as she whacked him on the head hard with the butt of her kunai. "It's muscle and skill that beat you. I am not fat."

"Says the woman who spends half her time eating dango dumplings," retorted Iruka around a hearty laugh, only to cry out again as Anko belted him. As the man struggled further, it accomplished nothing apart from turning him around, so it looked as if the woman was straddling his waist.

Deciding it was a conveniently awkward enough time to interrupt and pass the message, Kakashi jumped down lithely from the tree he was hiding in, clearing his throat to draw attention to his presence. "My, my, it looks like I'm interrupting something. Do you want me to come back at another time?" drawled Kakashi slowly, delighting in their matching startled faces by waving and displaying his trademark hidden smile.

Anko growled and leapt off Iruka pretty quickly at that comment. "It's not what it looks like." Her face was set in an embarrassed frown, her hands on her hips as she glared at the special-jounin in front of her. It wasn't like Kakashi's history with ANBU could scare her—she dealt with Ibiki on a near daily basis, so an ex-black-operations soldiers could hardly faze her, Sharingan or not.

A dirt-streaked chuunin got up slowly, dusting off his pants and pulling stray twigs from his hair, half-heartedly making an effort to look presentable.

"Yeah," he concurred with Anko, "it's not what it looked like." A mischievous grin spread over his face as he added, "She only wishes she could get a piece of this," he joked while he motioned vaguely with his hands at his own body, Kakashi's eyes following the gesture subconsciously, his eyes tracing the muscles he could barely see under the shirt sticking to his skin loosely from perspiration.

To that, Anko only responded with a crude hand gesture. Iruka smirked, and in a conspiratorial stage-whisper to Kakashi, he said, "That's her way of agreeing with me. Notice she didn't deny it?"

What Kakashi did notice was the brilliant red flush—slightly muted and harder to see with his tanned skin, but there all the same—caused from exertion in the younger man's cheeks, a colour that had spread from his cheeks to his neck and up his ears.

"As if I'd want a bit of your scrawny ass, you pipsqueak chuunin!" cried out an angered Anko. To be honest to himself, Hatake was put slightly off-balance at the chuunin's brazenness. Yet it wasn't wholly unattractive either to see Iruka so jovial and in such a teasing mood.

As Mitarashi went bat-shit crazy at Iruka's last comment, she began chasing after the chuunin once more, forgetting temporarily about the jounin staring at them both with astonished, if not amused, eyes. Correction: eye, as in the singular, not the plural. Whilst Anko had seen him without his mask and forehead protector, the teacher had not earned that privilege.

Once Umino had successfully dodged most of Anko's weapons, the purple-haired ninja finally looked like she'd let off enough steam—that, or she simply ran out of kunai, needles and throwing stars.

Wiping a damp brow, Anko said, "Sorry about that, Kakashi. You wanted to see me for...?" She left the sentence hanging, clearing wishing for an answer.

"Ahh, yes. Hokage wishes to see you and I in private." Kakashi wasn't technically allowed to say anything other than that, S-rank missions usually secretive and non-disclosed, but the jounin were both certain that Iruka was a smart enough chuunin to fully understand the hidden meanings in his words. _Underneath the underneath_, so to speak.

Anko nodded stiffly in comprehension, her eyes darting to the man beside her. Wiping his brow, Iruka sighed heavily. Straightening his back, he walked over to Anko and lightly grasped her arm, and pulled her into a loose hug. Kakashi watched with mild surprise at the contact that Anko didn't shy away from.

Although she was feisty and rather sexual in nature, Anko didn't like casual touches, like brushing of hands or light pressure on her back from warm fingers. For some reason though, she nearly leaned into the embrace with Iruka, and even if she didn't return the gesture, both men could see that she found a touch of comfort in it. It wasn't sexual in the slightest, and it was not like the way family hugged, yet it still spoke of a bond stronger than a usual friendship.

Although common courtesy would've dictated that Kakashi didn't eavesdrop on their hushed conversation, he was a ninja, and damn it, he was trained to be nosy!

"Come home safely," Iruka murmured into her ear. He was smart enough not to actually inject real worry in his tone, because it would have offended her to be degraded like that. Anko wasn't a jounin from sheer luck, after all. "The Third's hinted to me what the mission is going to be like, and from the sounds of it, this time around is going to be particularly brutal. That's why Hatake needs re-enforcements."

"Tch, you worry too easily, 'lil bro. It'll take more than what worries a chuunin to get to me."

"You say that every time."

"I've been right so far, haven't I?"

Iruka ruffled her hair playfully, ignoring her yelp of annoyance. "You've got to stop pulling the rank card on me, you know."

"Probably won't though."

A sigh. "You wouldn't be you if you did." He finally pulled away from her. Turning around, he raised an eyebrow to Kakashi who looked for all the world as a casual bystander, absorbed in his tattered orange book, instead of one guilty of eavesdropping shamelessly only moments before.

"You heard all of that, huh?" Iruka assumed rightfully. "Well, you should know that I hope you get back safely, too, Hatake. Please make sure that Anko doesn't overdo it." The man bowed shortly in respect and after sharing a significant glance with the purple-haired woman, he made the signs to teleport away. After the smoke cleared, Kakashi looked at Anko with one questioning eye.

"Idiot worries way too much," muttered Anko as she sent strings of chakra out to gather her weapons quickly and efficiently, sending the weapons soaring towards her with a delicate-yet-eerie tandem, plucking them from midair to neatly put back in their respective holsters.

Interesting. Kakashi let his mind ponder the information he just absorbed and filed them away for another day. As intriguing as Iruka was turning out, there was a mission to be completed.

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: I quite like stories where Anko and Iruka are close. So I decided to put that in here too. :-)**

**To people telling me Iruka can't come anywhere near Anko's skill? Check out these links (remove spaces):**

**http:// naruto. wikia. com/wiki/Anko_Mitarashi#Stats **

**http:// naruto. wikia. com/wiki/Iruka_Umino#Stats **

**According to their statistics, they're both pretty even in skill level. Anko's a shade stronger, but Iruka is far smarter. And she's a jounin, he's a chuunin; but so what? It's basically just a title. Haku was unbelievably strong, but I doubt he was officially listed as any rank. **

**//Slight rant over//. I'd love to read some reviews, especially thoughts on the statistics shown and what it all should mean.**


	4. Waiting Room

**A/N: Happy birthday, Iruka! 26th July. It was as if fate told me to update. Not only is it his birthday, but the 25-review quota was filled. Here you are, and I hope you enjoy the read!**

**This was fun for me to write. One of my favourites. I'm hoping it'll be equally enjoyable to read. This is where chapters stop being one shots and start being mildly continuous from previous chapter. Mildly, mind you.**

**Disclaimer: *Checks legal documents*. Nope. Still not mine.**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

The next time he saw Iruka was nearly a week later, when he had returned to the village with a rather quiet entrance, especially considering the fact he was supporting a bleeding Anko, who was close to death with mixed issues of severe blood loss and a near fatal amount of chakra depletion.

_That's my girl_, he thought with an almost smile. _A fighter to the bitter end. _She had unconsciously punched one of the medic-nin in the face—_hard—_when they grabbed her wrist to detect a pulse. Instincts flared the strongest when you were weakest, after all.

Anko had been whisked away, surrounded by worried, jabbering medic-nin, and after Kakashi was spared a brief physical examination, he was forced to debrief mission details. Sure, Kakashi was hurt, his left wrist broken in three different places, an a deep gash in his lower shin, but to ninja, especially one of his caliber, they were survivable, and therefore bearable during mission debriefings.

Wearily, he told the ANBU that stood before him of the minor difficulties they encountered, and the surprise attack that left Anko in such a state. However, they completed their task without casualties—on their side at least—and in the end, that was all that really mattered.

His voice was raspy and quiet as he reported, the ANBU replying so infrequently that Kakashi felt he was lecturing a monologue to the man—or was it a woman? ANBU outfits were getting more and more androgynous every time they upgraded. All he could really be sure of was that the person was young-ish, their stance firm and slightly proud, if Kakashi could garner anything from their body language. Staring into the unsympathetic, unfeeling, dark eye holes of the glinting porcelain mask, the jounin could not help but think, _I wonder how young you are to still feel pride. I wonder if you've been through what I've been through; the darkness and the violence and the bloodshed. I wonder if you've ever seen all your comrades die and couldn't get your mask off before you sank to your knees and vomited. I wonder and wonder, but I don't care._

As he waited in the sterile hospital waiting room to be treated properly, (he still needed to set the bones and get a few stitches instead of the rough patch job he was given to tide him by), wincing almost imperceptibly from the too-harsh electric lights hanging above him, his nose crinkled at the antiseptic stench in the air, a by-product of cleaners and over-conscious hygiene regimes, his attention was momentarily diverted when the sound of a scuffle broke out from his left.

Turning his head tiredly, he saw a pair of white-suited medic-nin forcibly restraining what he immediately recognized as Umino Iruka. He caught himself analysing him as a threat, _eyes keep darting to the left, attack right for blind spot and sweep out his feet_, and decided that he needed to calm the fuck down. When he was sizing up schoolteachers as threats, it was about time he lay down.

Blinking in an effort to wake himself up without moving too much, Kakashi finally realized that the man—Iruka—was growling, his eyes lit up with panic, and his hair in a disarray from being woken up, thrown in a sloppy ponytail.

"What the hell happened to her?" Iruka all but hissed venomously. "I was fucking told by Raidou that's she's hurt! If he thought it was important enough to stop by at _one in the damn morning_, then Anko must be pretty beaten up. Son-of-a-bitch, let me go! I need to see her!"

Kakashi checked the time—a plain white clock on the wall that had been ticking jarringly for the past hour just clicked over to quarter-past one. He could hear the ticking noise with a new clarity as he focused on it. It reminded him of an old nursery rhyme. _Tick tock went the clock and the girl bent down to suck the—_ Wait. That mightn't have been a nursery rhyme after all. _Icha Icha Poetry?_ Man, he hoped that didn't actually exist and was just some delusion conjured up by his tired brain. Shaking his head, he tuned back into the argument ensuing near him.

"Umino, sir, she's in the operating theater! We can't let anyone in except family, it goes against protocol," panted one nin as she tried to hold him back, the man nearly slipping past them.

"Screw protocol. She's damn well been my sister since the Nine-Tails attack," snarled Iruka, worry clouding his judgment. He stiffened when a hand latched firmly on his shoulder, but his eyes didn't widen when he turned to see Kakashi connected to the arm keeping him in place. A single nod to each of the harassed medic-nin, and they left quickly and silently, trusting in the jounin the keep the scarred man in line.

_Shit, what do I say now_? Kakashi was panicking calmly on the inside, his eye showing none of his inner conflict. _Should have thought before I acted. Oh crap; he's looking at me! I don't know what to say now though. Stupid instincts, stupid reflexes, stupid brain—_

"I'm sorry."

The words escaped Kakashi before he could analyze what exactly he was apologizing for. Was it for stopping Iruka's rush to see Anko, or was it because he didn't protect her well enough? Or maybe he was just saying sorry for how shit things were in general. It was hard to tell, but Iruka seemed to appreciate the gesture nonetheless, and his shoulders sagged slightly.

Still feeling the tense set of muscle beneath his fingers, he added, "She'll be fine by morning. Iruka, she'll make it. If Anko can keep up with Ibiki, then this is a trifle for her." He was going to say Orochimaru, but thought better of mentioning that particular disgraced teacher.

A garbled laugh bubbled from the younger man, who looked immediately contrite for laughing at such a time. The teacher turned to say something, but his gaze landed on the badly wrapped bandages around Kakashi's leg which were slowly turning crimson with soaked blood, his eyes rising upwards to land on the hastily placed split on his wrist before the chuunin finally shook his head in disbelief.

"That _has_ to hurt. Hatake—apologies, I meant Kakashi; please come here," Iruka asked politely in a strained voice, pulling the man into an empty examination room. He motioned for the jounin to be seated on the table while he looked through cupboards, rummaging quietly as he searched for things to help the injured Copy-Nin. Iruka walked back to the silver-haired nin with a tarnished silver tray laden with equipment and supplies.

_He looks more comfortable now he's doing something_, mused Kakashi as he watched the other scan the label of a blue bottle before popping it open with a kunai.

Silently, Iruka passed him two pills and told him to swallow them to get rid of the headache he surely had. It was a remarkably good guess—Kakashi displayed no signs of pain or discomfort, but the banging in his head _was_ getting a touch annoying. He only ran a curious and slightly suspicious eye over the rounded white tablets before downing them dry. _He wouldn't try poison me in a hospital_, Kakashi decided, a small part of him laughing at his overzealous paranoia, whilst another was shaking his head in disbelief. Another part of him wondered since when was his psyche split into several members each doing their own thing.

Injecting the jounin with a mild numbing agent, Iruka set to work setting the bones properly.

"You a healer as well as a teacher?" asked Kakashi interestedly, not the least bit concerned about who was treating him—he had a sort of faith that Iruka wouldn't be wholly incompetent once he had shut up the voice that kept him scanning for poisons and threatening movements.

"Well, I'm not officially trained as a full medic," answered Iruka distractedly as he adjusted the bones in the older man's wrist with a mixture of delicate twists with his fingers and well-placed jabs of chakra, "but since I work with children who play with weapons, I'm needed to have a pretty good knowledge of a basic patch job, so I took a few courses. I'm surprised that the other ninja let you sit for so long without doing this themselves."

"Eh. They had better things to do," shrugged Kakashi, who was feeling much better since the resonating ache of his wrist was now removed from the picture. Gently, it was slid into a sling supported by his neck, and Kakashi watched the concern from the other man with a cheery, if slightly droopy, eye.

Tightening the final knot on the split with a firm tug, Iruka crouched down to observe the bleeding wound in Kakashi's calf.

While the chuunin's head was practically at crotch height, Kakashi couldn't help but joke, "Haven't I read this porno before?"

What Kakashi didn't expect was Iruka to snap right back and say, "No doubt you have. I think it's the eighth book in the _Icha Icha Violence_ series." Without even looking up, Iruka injected Kakashi with a local anesthesia to numb the area before cleaning it with a sharp-smelling rubbing alcohol.

"What?" gaped Kakashi. "There's a eighth in that series out already?" _No, no, no! I couldn't have missed a book release while on a mission? What the hell?_

"No," laughed Iruka as he started stitching the wound shut. "I was just messing with you. Actually, I haven't even read the _Violence_ series yet."

Kakashi knew better than to move while the other was working away studiously on his leg, so he simply frowned sternly, even though most of his face was hidden, Iruka understood the non-verbal message from the jounin. Firmly, Kakashi stated, "You can't joke about porn like that."

"I just did," remarked Iruka with near indifference, a hint of humor tugging his lips up. Clean white bandages were quickly and efficiently being wrapped around the jounin's leg, which felt infinitely better with the attention. Alas, Kakashi was well aware that both injuries would burn like heck when he woke up the next morning, when the numbing agents surely would've been erased from his system.

A silence fell over the pair as Iruka finished up. Drowsy from the medicine, Kakashi felt especially brass about social protocol, (which was saying something), and felt it was the perfect time to quiz Iruka about his personal life.

"So, you know the Hokage personally?" This question had been playing on his mind a bit in the earlier hours of his mission, when he was still mulling over everything he heard when he crossed Iruka with Anko.

"Yeah," said Iruka without embarrassment or pause. "He was there for me a lot as a kid. I guess, in an unofficial way, he became by mentor. But he's like that to a lot of people. We still get together every other day, when our schedules are free to have tea, play chess and talk though." Leaning back on the counter, Iruka's eyes seemed to be staring at some far off world, obviously remembering a particularly fond memory as he smiled slightly.

"And do you care to explain why Anko calls you her 'little brother'?" asked Kakashi, snapping the chuunin out of the spell he was in.

"That's because we're both orphans, and we've sort-of adopted each other because of it," replied the other haltingly, as if having trouble explaining it. "After the Nine-Tails attack, I was left parent-less and was depressed to the point I would have needed medical attention. The loneliness was getting to me, but then Anko showed up at my house one night and unceremoniously began to teach me how to cook. Somehow, we got closer with every lesson until she stopped teaching me altogether; she finally said I was good enough that I could cook for her. However, we still meet up at least once a week, and we're as close as siblings, you could say."

Kakashi had known Anko for many years, and he'd never known that she could cook. He pretty much said as much to the chuunin.

"Yeah," smiled Iruka warmly. "You'd never pin her as the type, but she's a good cook, and I learned many things under her careful eye. Without her, I'd be burning water. Though, ironically enough, she can't cook dango—which I thought was fairly simple. I think she just finds the treat better had when someone else takes the time and effort to make it, especially considering how many she can eat in one sitting."

They talked for a great deal longer than that, passing the time in wait of the end of Anko's surgery. The conversation carried both the signs of actually enjoying the other's company, sincere interest, but also the slightest hint of distraction, both men trying not to think too had about their mutual friend stuck under the eye of the medic-nin. As time passed and moonlight faded more gradually from the room, Iruka eventually sat on top of the counter to face the Copy-Nin relaxing on the table, conversation constantly flowing, even though it became stilted at times when a sensitive topic was accidentally breached—like the full extent of Anko's injuries.

Around four in the morning, Anko was declared safe and was expected to be fully operational within a month by a quiet ninja garbed in white, clearly exhausted from his efforts. Kakashi caught Iruka's eye for one fleeting moment, and he tipped his head forward in an understanding nod telling the younger man to hurry on ahead. The jounin would give them their privacy for today. He'd come back later after he went to the memorial stone. _After I make a pit stop to my apartment and crash for a few days_, he thought with a warm longing for his bed.

Contradictions. So many variants and false ideas. Kakashi had still not pinned down Iruka fully. Today he'd probably be later than usual. After all, he had a lot of things to tell Obito at the memorial stone; his mind was racing from both the memories of the mission, as well as the mocha-skinned man who he could no longer call a stranger.

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: There we go. Some serious bonding time between Kakashi and Iruka. (Was it just me, or did that come out sounding dirty?) **


	5. Rooftop Picnic

**A/N: Posted because it's my birthday today! Everybody dance! Very much like this chapter. Hope you guys do, too!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor do I profit from fanfiction. If only, eh?**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

It was a long time later before the fifth encounter between Kakashi and Iruka. Iruka was busy for a few weeks with fussily caring for Anko, and when the school term restarted, he was stretched thin with his new regime he was experimenting out for teaching the children. The Copy-Nin was still testing the waters with his new genin team, assessing their limits and pushing their boundaries.

The night after Team 7 came back from the Wave Country, all bearing signs of wear and tear from their most unfortunate mission, Kakashi left the hospital with only a prescription for some sleep to restore his chakra levels, not wanting to stay in the overly sterile environment any longer than he needed. The ninja shouldn't have wasted their time on the jounin. His genin team were much weaker and tired, and needed psychological analysis done promptly. After an attack of that severity, any young genin would've been fairly shaken up.

Not that Kakashi himself was; at their age, he was a chuunin already. Then again, the Copy-Nin had lived a pretty fucked up life.

After passing out at his apartment for an entire day, give or take a few hours, comforted into a deeper sleep by the familiar environment and the knowledge that there was only a 4% chance he'd be attacked at that very moment in his own home, Kakashi hastily scrawled out the mission report, as he did not want to think too much at what happened, and only wrote down the bare basics of how a simple mission went so terribly wrong, preferring to finish those nuisances as quickly as possible, quality be damned, even if Iruka would snap at him to rewrite it.

That thought promptly reminded him—Iruka needed to know about Naruto. The child wasn't truly harmed in any way, but one thing Kakashi knew as firmly as he did his own name was how strongly the man cared for the Nine-Tails container. He'd already briefed the Hokage about how Naruto finally lost control of the demon fox, and whilst it was only for a brief while, it raised concerns for those close to the child. Mainly one Umino Iruka.

That teacher was certainly a strange one. One day after their conversation in the hospital, the jounin was abruptly overcome by some incessant need to know _more_ about the other man. So he did what any self-respecting ninja should do. He sneaked into the records room and looked up his file.

Of course his own personal security clearance was higher than what Iruka's file needed, but he felt that sneaking around fit the ninja way more precisely. Not to mention, he didn't want his little visit to go on record – his interest in the chuunin could spark off some very obscene rumors from bored desk workers.

What he found was worth the effort. The man's file was surprisingly thick, over half dedicated to the pranks that Iruka pulled as a youth. Or at least, they were speculated that he pulled them off. No one ever found enough evidence to fully bring him forth and blame him. The Third had made careful note, though, on each suspicious prank, and if all of them were indeed planned out by Umino as a child, he was certainly a genius of sorts, at least.

For a moment, the Copy-Nin stared at a picture of Iruka when he had just graduated to a genin. Whether it was a trick of the light, or from his own experience with both individuals, Kakashi could've sworn the child Iruka had the same cheeky glint in his eyes that Naruto had.

The scar still branched across Iruka's face, but looked fresher, newer and lighter in colour. In the section labeled, 'Injuries', he was listed as obtaining that scar from an unfortunate accident. Nothing more was said, but Kakashi was now intrigued. He had never really thought about how the younger man had received such a prominent scar. He mentally noted to ask the next time he saw him.

Kakashi quickly absorbed the side notes in various handwritings that claimed Umino was worthy of promotion, whether to a higher position in the academy, mission room, or his status as chuunin in general to jounin. To all these, Iruka had declined, quoted as being, 'Content with his current place'. _So he hadn't been lying when he said the Third wanted him as a jounin_, thought Kakashi as he recognized the flowing script of the Hokage on a note in a margin.

Slipping within those recommendations was a bright yellow slip with the words 'Psych Analysis' stamped over it in shocking red. Scanning it with a trained eye, it lined up with what Iruka told him—he wasn't suitable for assassinations, but what he learned was that the chuunin was perfect for infiltration. For that skill alone, Iruka could've moved up the career ladder.

A piece of faded blue paper caught his eye. It was written that Iruka had been petitioning the council for legal guardianship of Naruto for some time now, only to be turned down again and again because the child held the demon-fox sealed inside of him. Whilst the Hokage was on Iruka's side, the elders of the council maintained that the boy was too dangerous for any family to care for. Which was a ridiculous notion, since Umino had practically been raising the boy since Mizuki's attack.

Reading between the lines, it was obvious to Kakashi that the council didn't want anyone—except themselves—to have control or real sway to the container of the monster.

Too late really, since Iruka was practically a father in all but formalities. And Naruto would never listen to the council, who he thought of as a group of 'old fish' for all he cared. They never helped him, and every attempt to manipulate the child failed. From what the jounin could gather, all this legal jargon was going on underneath Naruto's nose. He had no idea, or any say in the matter. But Kakashi wouldn't hesitate to bet he'd want Iruka as a true father.

A wondering thought passed Kakashi's mind for a second, wondering why it was so important that Iruka have the title of father over Naruto when he acted like he was already, questioning why the chuunin worked so hard, and so long, for something that seemed like it would never happen with the council the way it was. In the next moment, however, he answered his own question.

For Naruto, Iruka wanted to give the orphan something he lost himself; a true family, in everything but blood. Someone Naruto could officially call his father.

So Kakashi felt that this man certainly had every right to know was was going on with his son.

Glancing out of the window to confirm what his inner clock told him, he saw the bright moon, the fullest in its monthly cycle. Nighttime. When monsters and all things evil-and-dark lurked in the shadows, hidden just from sight, yet always visible from the corner of your eye. The time when ninja flourish, because they know what's hiding in the dark, and if they don't like it, they kill it.

Kakashi quickly stripped, showered and brushed his teeth, erasing the veil of grime covering his body since leaving Wave Country. He really should have done all this before he went to bed, but honestly he was too tired to really care.

After fifteen minutes, Kakashi was cleaned and dressed in a new set of clothes, feeling almost human again. All the lethargy he may have felt, the cold web of sleep that clung to his upon awakening was now removed, leaving him remarkably fresh and energetic. If only he could get some food into his gut, he'd feel as good as new. Too bad he didn't regularly stock his pantry or fridge, and what little he had in there had spoiled from neglect.

After he went to find Iruka, he'd treat himself to a meal out in some restaurant somewhere, perhaps. The time of night didn't matter, because in a ninja village, there was always a shop open somewhere to feed someone. As for waking Iruka, he didn't think the man would mind for exchange of information pertaining to Naruto.

The cool air felt good through his head, though it made his single exposed eye water slightly. The air had a clear tang to it, a sign of recent rain. Not to mention the gleaming puddles on the rooftops were a sure giveaway.

Though Kakashi knew where Iruka lived on a vague basis, he didn't think he'd find the man straightaway, a half-formed plan in the man of his mind to check each floor of the apartment block for the teacher's unique chakra signal. Luck, or perhaps serendipity, was on his side because the man he was looking for was kitted out on the roof, wrapped in a swathe of blankets, sitting meditatively on a picnic blanket, his thin fingers wrapped around a steaming cup of tea, his eyes staring contemplatively at the giant moon hanging over their heads.

When he finally made his way next to the quiet chuunin, the man turned slowly and smiled tiredly at Kakashi. It was clear from his gaze that he expected the jounin, which was no surprise since Kakashi hadn't bothered masking his chakra in the slightest.

"Hello, Kakashi," murmured Iruka quietly. The jounin was pleased to note that Iruka stopped calling him by his last name, a trait he was glad to have stamped out before it transformed into a habit.

"What're you doin' out here on the rooftops?" Kakashi asked casually, hands shoved deep into his pockets.

"I could ask you the same thing," shrugged Iruka before he patted a dry patch of blanket, indicating that the taller man sit next to him.

As the jounin made himself comfortable, Iruka held up another cup of steaming tea which he'd evidently poured from a canister hidden by his bulky frame. Kakashi silently accepted the gesture, and they sat in a balanced, relaxed silence for a while.

Blowing at the hot tea through cloth covered lips, Kakashi remarked, "How lucky that you had another cup. Expecting company?"

"No. It's just that I've done this often enough to know that if I don't pay attention I can nod off and drop the cup to have it shatter spectacularly on the ground," explained Iruka after taking a small sip of his drink. "And really, it's too much bother to get up and get another cup from the kitchen."

"Lazy and intelligent. Marvelous combination for a teacher," laughed Kakashi.

A chuckle escaped the tanned man, who looked up at the pale ninja with a sparkle of humor in his tired eyes. "Was that a sly reference to yourself, Kakashi?"

"Perhaps."

"An ego as big as the moon, I swear," muttered Iruka playfully under his breath.

"Which begs the question: what exactly are you doing up here, staring at the moon tonight?"

A pause. Not an uncomfortable one either. Moments passed and crickets chirped. Eventually the man thought the teacher wasn't going to answer his question, but Iruka started to talk.

"Sometimes, especially when the moon is full, I can't sleep." Insomnia: a common disorder many ninja suffer from. A regretful sigh passed the chuunin's lips. "No one remembers this as well as I do, but the Nine-Tails attacked the village during a full moon. Not that you could see the sky very well with the Nine-Tail's chakra covering the sky, but still, I knew it was a full moon."

"How did you know?"

"The moon pulls the tide, strongest in power when its full, and my mother had an affinity for water jutsu. She told me before she died that the power of the moon would keep her safe; keep her strong, safe and alive. Only now do I comprehend the enormity of her lie. She ran to death like any proud ninja should."

The masked jounin didn't like the chuunin's face, obscured by shadows, yet somehow unbearably melancholy. Trying to steer the conversation to safer shores, he asked, "Do you have a water affinity from your mother's side then?"

"Ha!" Iruka snorted, a bit of sarcastic humor tinting his face, chasing away a bit of the darkness. "Why does everyone assume I am named after a sea creature, my elemental control is water?"

"The whole 'dolphin' thing; you've probably got teased heaps as a kid."

"Don't remind me. Sometimes I am angry with my parents for giving me a name so filled with assumptions. Though," Iruka smirked, "you must cop a lot of crap on 'scarecrow' puns."

Ignoring the jibe, only shrugging in response, Kakashi worked towards something he was more interested in. "So if it isn't water, what is it?"

"Why, it's lightning—just like you, Kakashi." The jounin didn't bother to hide his surprise, and Iruka didn't pretend not to notice. "However, I do occasionally act like my mother. She couldn't sleep well when the moon was at its fullest; for the power flowing in her veins, I for the memories it brings."

Kakashi looked down as his tea, half-empty from his covert gulps when he was certain the other wasn't looking. "Does the rooftop picnic help?"

"I've never called them a 'picnic', but yeah, having tea on the roof generally helps..." Iruka trailed off, his eyes almost glazing over as he was momentarily lost in thought. "I must ask before I forget, but were you looking for me?"

A shrug of the shoulders and the jounin nodded. "I think I've been out of it for at least a day. So can I assume you've heard about Naruto?"

"I have." Kakashi's keen gaze noticed the minute tightening of the younger man's fingers, knuckles paling, looking nearly white in the moonlight. Trapping his gaze, Iruka stared Kakashi down with fiercely protective brown eyes, anger and relief intermingling in their depths.

"Did he tell you everything about the mission?" Naruto was still in the dark about the fox inside his body escaping, knowing something happened, but clueless to the exact details; but surely Iruka could read between the lines—and if not, Kakashi would fill him in.

"Yes, to an extent. With flamboyant exaggerations and hand gestures." Silence. In a quieter voice, he continued, "He lost control of _it_, didn't he? I talked to the Third, and he said, that you said..."

"Sasuke's near death experience really rattled him," replied Kakashi as way of explanation. Further detail was risky in an open environment where the demon-fox and its container was still generally loathed.

A strange choking sound escaped the chuunin. "At least he didn't change."

"You thought he would?" Surprise flooded Kakashi at the thought of this man's faith wavering.

"I feared, of course I did," admitted Iruka, his voice a note away from breaking. "But he's still... him." Iruka didn't see Naruto when he released the bubbling chakra mold of a tail, but Kakashi spared him the visual.

Wrapping his hands more securely around the mug of tea, Iruka whispered, "I was more scared that I would hate him if the fox ever got out. But I don't. Which is good. But I still wonder: am I allowed to love something that killed so many, including my family?"

"Naruto isn't the murderer, and it's certainly not the fox who lights up with happiness at the thought of a ramen dinner treated by his favourite teacher."

"You treat him to ramen?" Iruka asked in surprise.

A soft laugh escaped Kakashi. "Fool, I was talking about you. Just because I'm a jounin, it doesn't mean I can replace you in his mind." Kakashi caught something like gratefulness in the other's eye.

"Thank you, Kakashi," quietly passed his lips as Iruka looked away.

Kakashi didn't freeze, but his muscles tightened instinctively. "Whatever for?"

"Saving him. Them. All of them."

There was no need to specify who 'him' or 'them' was. There was a call of an owl in the distance, ignored by the two men, but it resonated throughout the forests, creating a domino effect of nocturnal bird calls.

"Sasuke always could hold his own. And Naruto was pretty spectacular in his own right."

"That boy may stretch the truth of his missions," said Iruka with a touch of undying affection, "but when I visited him earlier in the hospital, he told me in an honest voice about how amazing you were, and how you protected them. For that, I have to thank you."

"Duty requires no thanks," Kakashi replied in a monotone. _I would kill again and again, but I don't know whether I deserve any thanks for doing my orders._

"I know it isn't mere duty that made you risk your life for them. You're more human than you give yourself credit to believe."

"Underneath the underneath?"

"Underneath the underneath," agreed Iruka with a slight chuckle, recognizing the reference, no doubt from Naruto himself. Blowing spirals of steam from his hot tea once more, Iruka smiled. Kakashi held out his cup for a refill, which Iruka obligingly handed out, a smirk playing on the corners of his lips.

Content. Peace. Relaxed. Kakashi felt all of these emotions of the rooftop, and they lingered even after he parted ways with the teacher upon the arrival of dawn.

That was the first rooftop picnic of many to come.

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: The idea of a rooftop picnic struck me when I was eating a sandwich outside at night—don't ask why—and I realized that it was really quite night and refreshing. Was it sweet? I thought it was sweet. Tell me your thoughts in a review.**


	6. Compare, Contrast

**A/N: Read everything before you start freaking. This is, and always will be, a Kakashi/Iruka story. Bland girl is just a plot device. Calm down and breathe. **

**Theme of jealousy. ;-D There's some denial there, too. Both are still sort-of in the stage of, 'good friends, totally nothing else going on here'... **

**Disclaimer: Blah-blah-blah, you know the drill. Don't own, don't profit, don't care. Does anyone **_**check**_** this stuff? I really wonder. **

**¥¥Y¥¥**

What Kakashi saw next caused him to stop and notice Iruka in a whole new light. Not that he'd ever really admit it unless under torture. Maybe not even then. Because the Copy-Nin wouldn't ever think he'd succumb to something like _jealousy_.

Iruka was perhaps a rough twenty feet ahead of him, partially hidden by the heavy crowd of the weekend markets. He was easily discernible nonetheless by his distinctive chakra flare, bright in the midst of civilians.

Kakashi had always instinctively muffled his, a self-preservation technique as his own signal was much stronger calling beacon when left unchecked. Iruka, while strong of mind, with a Will of Fire burning brightly, had a naturally muted aura of chakra that Kakashi would have liked to describe as pale green or yellow. It wasn't garishly powerful, but held a semblance of soft wickedness that seemed like an intense energy of its own.

Sensing the other's chakra was nothing surprising enough to halt movement on its own, but what Kakashi saw somehow angered and scared him all at the same time. What was worse was that he didn't know _why_ he felt like that.

All he saw wasthat Iruka was wandering through the markets with another woman. She was touching his arm and smiling and laughing, doing nothing wrong in the technical sense of the word, but Kakashi rejected her actions anyway. _Why? _

His reaction was childish, irrational, and perhaps a tad possessive. He consoled himself that it was merely because Iruka was the first someone he'd met in a long time that held decent conversation and made him laugh. Kakashi didn't like to share, but he'd have to tolerate it since Iruka wasn't property to be handed around.

The man was perfectly allowed in his own right to take a woman out on a date. _A woman who was currently resting her hand on his arm and smiling in a not-so-friendly manner and kept sighing and giggling like some cheap—. _Kakashi paused and scowled, unintentionally frightening some of the more sensitive civilians walking past him who could feel the dark intent rolling off his shoulders in waves.

_No. No slandering someone of potential interest to Iruka. He's a friend, who deserves happiness... JUST NOT WITH HER! _Taking a deep breath, Kakashi stopped his line of thought and instead analyzed the source of his discomfort.

Wait, no. Discomfort was the wrong word. Being tied up and whipped in enemy territory was discomforting. Having a medic take off his mask while under anesthesia was even more so. This woman was more of an irritation. And a bland one at that.

Black hair, pale skin, skinny build of a civilian: all up a rather mundane-looking woman. But Kakashi didn't think that Iruka felt the same; not with the way he was smiling at her. Innocent smiles that made the corner of his eye raise upward and his entire face beam. Kakashi's hand itched to grab a throwing star, and hurl it between the pair, but he had more than enough self-control to stop himself.

His entire body literally twitched, however, when the woman threw back her head and gave out a shrilling laugh that showed all of her teeth. The noise was screeching to Kakashi's more sensitive ears, but the teacher merely smiled some more, and moved a few feet to the next stand.

_Her smile is ugly_, Kakashi found himself thinking immaturely. His hand had moved halfway to touch his own face before he hurriedly set it back into his pocket.

Kakashi was fairly sure he had a nice smile. He couldn't be sure, of course, not being able to view his face with the detachment of a third-party member, but in the brief moments he'd unveiled it for some reason or another, people seemed reasonably swooned.

Another touch to the hand, yet another laugh—this time, a quieter one from Iruka, and Kakashi narrowed his eye. Worried whispers from around him started to filter through his clogged brain, and he recognized that it was about time he moved. Without warning, he jumped onto a rooftop and continued watching.

It was strange. When something hurts, there was usually two distinct reactions. The first, and more common option was to remove the pain, to get away from the source. The second was to tough through it and keep on going. Usually, the jounin chose the first, only pressing into the second option if forced or if using the agony as penance.

Seeing Iruka with someone else hurt, but he didn't stop and turn away, as easy as it would have been to do. He just sat and kept watching. The action was one part addictive, one part compulsive, and one part insanity. _Maybe two parts of the last one_, he mused offhandedly.

For some reason, something twisted and clenched in his gut as the woman brushed against Iruka as they looked at various pears. While the teacher was paying the vendor for two juicy pieces, the woman eyed him in a hungry way that instantly set Kakashi on the edge.

Juice ran down Iruka's chin as he bit into the ripe fruit, and Kakashi swore to every god that he thought could exist that if that girl licked it off—like she was clearly thinking of doing—then he couldn't be held responsible for murder. _Well, today, anyway. _

"Pretty lady!" A street vendor cried out enthusiastically above the din of the markets as the pair passed his way. "Buy a clip to get the hair away from those beautiful eyes!"

Beautiful eyes. Perhaps that's what Iruka liked. Kakashi only had the one. And not even that. It was gray and dull; essentially, it was his father's. The other was Obito's. And it was scarred. Not that the good teacher had ever had the misfortune to see it.

Blinking in rapid succession, Kakashi rubbed at the eye beneath the forehead protector, suddenly irritated as if it didn't like how it was being thought of. It wasn't the first time it'd happened, strange as the idea was. Unfortunately for him, there wasn't exactly prior knowledge on the procedure for him to fall back on.

Looking down at the pair once more, he noticed with a start what they were wearing. Fixated before on the situation and their actions, he'd barely paid any attention to their attire. Iruka looked attractive out of his usual ninja garb; black skin-tight turtleneck and stone-washed denim jeans with little frayed scratches up and down the legs. _Were those superficially added in for that "artistic" touch, or did Iruka get them in a fight?_

More than half of Kakashi's wardrobe had little tears and rips in the fabric in one place or another, and whether it came from fights with enemy-nin or his dogs scratching his leg mattered little. Kakashi had little to no patience with patching up clothes that would inevitably end up torn once more.

The girl, he noted with a slight brush of disdain, was donned in mock-ninja uniform, the current trend in Leaf's civilian fashion circles. It was ridiculous to most ninja, especially kunoichi, who found it utterly amusing of how technically incorrect the clothes were.

To the eyes of a novice, they could pass for ninja, but they weren't real ninja clothes. There were no hidden pockets for weapons, no places to hold scrolls, no allowance for wide upper body movement, the colours too garish for camouflage or undercover work, and, as Kakashi heard it from Kurenai, arterial blood was near _impossible_ to wash out of it.

Anko deftly added to that conversation a list of other bodily fluids that weren't machine washable. It was surprisingly long, and to this thought Anko only shrugged and explained she had a lot of time to experiment and test the material out. Kakashi wisely refrained from asking for details.

So, no. The mock-ninja garb was nothing more than a weak civilian attempt to copy-cat the village's elite. Some were flattered, some were offended, most amused, but all agreed it was rather stupid to buy ridiculously high-priced fakes when the real thing was so much better.

Iruka was better than that. Kakashi was sure he could get a lot of proper ninja asking for a date, so why'd he settle for this wannabe?

Kakashi was now irrationally frustrated. He was a leader, a captain, a man with a plan: he didn't just like frustration—he loathed it with a passion. The feeling of irrationality, while familiar, today just added to his annoyance. He roughly ran a hand through his hair, wiry and wild; not that he'd ever really bothered trying to tame it. It was scratchy and dry and was as different as possible as his father's surprisingly smooth and soft hair.

Kakashi watched them wander the market appearing to be a rather happy pair until they walked out of sight. The jounin was not the one to doggedly stalk his friends without good reason, so he let them go with a strange ache of discomfort rolling around him. Sitting back, his arms propping him on the tiles of the roof slightly damp and slippery from the rains, he stayed in silent contemplation for a long while.

When he finally got to his destination, no-one believed him when he excused his lateness with, "I was busy watching a witch trapping a good man in her grasp and spent my time debating whether he wanted to be freed or not."

No typical smile of amusement graced his face when the word "liar" was shouted out at him. Not that anyone could really tell with his mask.

¥¥Y¥¥

The moon was full and the sky startling clear without clouds; perhaps the first clear night since in a week.

"I starting to think that you wouldn't come." Iruka smiled at him and moved across to make room for Kakashi. They were on the roof again, about to share tea and stories. Kakashi was late, and while his reputation preceded him, he made an effort not to be late for Iruka. Not today, however; so it was understandable that the chuunin felt he'd spend the night alone. He would never know how close Kakashi was to staying at home, but in the end, the jounin couldn't help but come out.

"How was your day?" Kakashi asked as he took his cup, giving one brief trademark smile that didn't feel real enough before quickly looking away.

Kakashi was going through the motions, really. He didn't inflict any more or less emotion into his tone than usual, but the younger man cast a critical gaze over him nonetheless. Under his watch, Kakashi's skin broke into goosebumps, but he displayed no real visible adverse reaction. _Maybe because it's nice to be watched like that._ Kakashi wondered whether it was a sign of insanity to tell his own thoughts to _shut the hell up_ so vehemently.

Shaking his head in response to the silent question, he motioned for Iruka to answer. Kakashi was in no mood to confess that he watched Iruka on his _date_. Then again, he wasn't keen on hearing the chuunin ramble on about the spark in his love life.

"I had the most _awful_ day."

Well. _That_ was unexpected. Kakashi's lone visible eyebrow rose critically while he tilted his head indicative of disbelief. _Go on_, was implied and the chuunin sipped his rapidly cooling tea before continuing.

"I woke up late, ended up having no groceries to cook food, and then remembered that I had a parent/teacher meeting halfway through the day, which I then had to reschedule from the Academy which I forget was undergoing brief renovations for the demolished west wing. Damn student teacher let the pre-genin play with the exploding tags. Proper ones, mind you! The idiot." Iruka paused in his tirade to take a breath, ignorant of or ignoring the growing smile on Kakashi's face.

"Anyway, I decided to take the parent shopping with me, multi task and all. Normally parent/teacher interviews aren't too bad," sighed the chuunin tiredly, "but I got this _civilian_ parent—single, mind you, she wouldn't stop stressing _that_—who kept interchanging between blatantly flirting with me and demanding that I keep her son away from the, and I quote, 'sharp, pointy objects'!"

It was far too late for Kakashi to get a grip on himself and stop his uncontrollable laughter. In the clear night it sounded loud and strangely pure with happiness, if that made sense. He'd been worried over nothing! Granted, he was grateful that he didn't go ahead and do anything stupid like barge in and interrupt the 'date' or cold-shoulder the chuunin, but still, it was pointless, meaningless worry that had him tied up in knots for the better part of an afternoon.

"Keep laughing and I'll tip this pot of tea all over you!" Iruka's voice made it perfectly clear that it wasn't an empty threat, although there was the familiar warmth of humor flavoring his tone.

"Okay, okay." Kakashi muffled his mirth, but was unable to rid his face of the smile.

"Stop smiling like that!" Umino seemed torn between annoyance and his own smile tugging at the corners of his lips. He seemed perfectly able to control his face for the most part, but the light sparkle in his eye gave away his hidden laughter.

"How can you tell that I'm smiling?"

"I don't need to see your face to know when you find something particularly humorous, Kakashi."

"Come on," Kakashi pressed. "It's pretty funny. The cliché scene where the single parent hits on the single teacher? _Icha Icha Tactics_ has that very plot line!"

An odd sounding snort escaped Iruka, one part disbelief another part humor. "I really appreciate you comparing my life to a porn book, Kakashi."

In a teasing voice, Kakashi countered, "Sarcasm isn't a pretty mask, Iruka."

"Then you must be _hideous_," laughed the younger man as he refilled their tea cups. Kakashi merely rolled his eye in response. "Let the record stand that my day didn't end like the bloody book did."

"Grateful or wistful?" Kakashi almost smacked himself as he asked, but he didn't take back the words.

"What? That I didn't bed the parent of one of my students?" More sarcasm.

"What else?" A tint of curtness made its way into his voice, and Kakashi tried to soften it, but it was too late. Thankfully, the younger ignored it. The jounin had no doubt that it was noticed, however.

"Grateful. I don't need the headache of the controversy, not to mention she isn't my type."

A rumbling hum of interest filtered from Kakashi. "What's your type then?"

"Well, first off, I'm into men, so there's that, I guess." Only a blink passed in response in the first moment. Iruka had his sexuality listed in his folder like most ninja, noted as bisexual though leaning towards men, so it wasn't overly surprising to Kakashi.

It was, on the other hand, rather extraordinary that Iruka would choose to voluntarily share that information with him. Homosexuality was gradually being more accepted in the Leaf village, but there were deep-rooted bigots who couldn't think otherwise and those who felt it was unnatural and devastating to a culture that needed to retain bloodlines.

Clearing his throat, Kakashi grinned and said, "Yeah, I agree that'd put a hamper in her seduction plans."

Iruka's small smile was noted by Kakashi, who had apparently exuded an acceptable reaction to the news.

"Sushi?" Iruka offered as a side thought. As the jounin nodded, a plate of sliced sushi rolls seemed to pop into existence.

Critically eying the plate, Kakashi just picked up the wisps of teleportation smoke. "You summoned the food from scrolls?"

Shaking his head, Iruka laughed. "No, just summoned it up from the fridge downstairs. It's surprisingly easy."

Shrugging, the other just drank some more tea before digging in, feeling nicely buoyant in the clear air with good conversation, good tea—and apparently good food. The Copy-Nin relished in the smooth texture and light tang of soy. "Fresh fish?"

"Caught by the meditation waterfall using kunai and chakra strings. It's good fun," Iruka nodded enthusiastically. "I'll take you there one day and show you how to catch the biggest ones."

There was the briefest of pauses in Kakashi's chewing, not that Iruka would see it—his gaze politely averted as they ate, allowing his mask to drop minutely longer than he usually would allow it.

What Iruka said spoke of a promise planned for the future. In a world of constant life or death, a comment was very rash. Who's to say he wouldn't die tomorrow? Who's to say that Kakashi himself wouldn't die tomorrow? Who said that they'd still be friends? It sent his thoughts swimming on various tangents, before he swallowed heavily and responded.

"Sure. And I'll take you in the Forest of Death and show you how to catch some of the less venomous snakes and make the most wonderful stew you've ever eaten."

Ninja dishes were nothing if not slightly eccentric, and Kakashi couldn't help but be happy of that fact from Iruka's blinding smile.

At this point, Kakashi knew that what he shared with Iruka was worthy enough to get incredibly jealous over, but he still didn't know just how important it was. Not just yet.

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: Real life is eating my soul, so I apologize for the late update. 25****th**** review came in and reminded me and forced me to kick my ass into gear as soon as I got the chance.**

**I like the dialogue part near the end the most. I'm not entirely happy with the first part. I was trying to make him subconsciously compare himself to the woman, yet I kept tying his looks back to his father accidentally. Urgh. Oh well. **

**Silly Kakashi. Thinking that him and Iruka are **_**just**_** friends. *Giggle-snort*.**

**Reviews = energy + love = effort = writing.****  
Alternatively: Flames = laughter at you wasting the time to read.  
Alternatively: Constructive criticism = grateful for your help. **

**Simple equations, people! :-)**


	7. In Absence

**A/N: Oh God, Iruka, man, I'm so sorry. In my stories, I always end up putting you—and not Kakashi, oddly enough—into some kind of painful shit.**

**Iruka: Damn you. Seriously, I die in one of your one shots and attempt suicide in the other. WTF? You better make it up to me.**

**Kakashi: You know **_**I**_** will, right?**

**Iruka: Mmm...**

**Me: Oi! You two aren't meant to be all cozy for another few chapters. Shoo!**

**Early update is because of the 25-review promise I made. I don't know whether to hug you or to yell at you for making me write when I'm so busy. *Thinks it over*. *TACKLE-HUG!***

**Disclaimer: Does it look like I own Naruto? And if anyone cracks a, 'Well... you **_**are**_** Asian' comment, I will go insane.**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

The seventh time Kakashi noticed Umino Iruka in a perspective-altering way, was, oddly enough, when he wasn't there at all.

_Absence makes the heart grow fonder_, he recalled before stamping down on that thought, hard. Thinking things like that was only suitable for lovers. Umino was his friend only. A nothing-special chuunin teacher. Totally unattractive in any way but friendship. And denial [the Nile] wasn't just a river that ran through the deserts of Sand Country.

It had been a month since the chuunin was sent out with another two in a basic cell to complete a mid B-rank mission. The mission's parameters listed that it should have been completed in three days. The longevity of the trip clearly showed that something went wrong.

People were unsettled by the one week mark. When it turned into a fortnight, those who knew Iruka were openly worried. As the third week came and went, rumors started circulating about the men's death.

Some were talking about listing them as M.I.A. and carving their names into the memorial stone.

As time passed, more people considered this as a serious course of action.

Many people worried about Iruka, more than the chuunin probably knew about.

His students were becoming restless, and their grades were falling as they became more and more agitated that he mightn't return. Fellow academy teachers were increasingly worried that they might live to see the loss of another good friend and colleague. Anko had to be forcibly suppressed from going out on her own to search for her so-called 'little brother'. Genma and Raidou went through official means to go out and track down the man, but they came back with squat after a week of fruitless searching.

Naruto was simply beside himself, and mayhem ensued because of it. There was no reassuring him in the later weeks; no matter how much the boy insisted his teacher would come back, it was all too easy to see the worry in his eyes. Thankfully, no one even mentioned the slight possibility that the men went missing-nin, a rumor firmly squashed at the bud by several chuunin trained originally under Iruka. But if Naruto had heard that, it was likely he would have lost the last of his senses and felt something more than mere abandonment.

Quite a few of the elite jounin felt a strange attachment to the kindly man who would yell at them every time they handed in a report. One couldn't ever really _hate_ the man, no matter how loud and agitated he got when he bellowed his lungs out at you. Actually, Iruka was pretty kind if you looked more closely.

On more than one occasion did Iruka light Asuma's cigarette because his hands couldn't stop shaking from a particularly brutal mission; he'd patched up Kurenai when she couldn't reach the wounds on her back and the medic-nin were too busy with her half-dead team mates; more than once did he hand out sleeping droughts to jounin and chuunin alike, especially when they couldn't sleep that night from a murder they committed; and Iruka always had time, swamped in work or not, to talk and most importantly, listen.

Jounin sometimes needed someone to talk to. About missions, about life and death, guilt and pain. They needed to speak to someone not overly close with them, but not a stranger either. Definitely not another jounin, and most certainly not a civilian. They had to be trustworthy and tight-lipped. Umino was known for possessing most of those qualities.

More and more of the jounin felt the need to go out and seek the chuunin, but they were needed for other missions that couldn't be delayed—S-rank or worse were becoming increasingly more prominent as a handout in the mission room scrolls, even the Hokage without enough time to hand each one out personally.

While people worried, no one was really able to do anything. They soon stopped searching for Iruka, and thought that a body search was now the way to go. Not that finding bodies was a common thing when ninja died—usually their bodies were destroyed or taken back for analysis by other villages.

Kakashi still looked though. Searched the surrounding forests on his way back from some terrifying mission, no matter how tired or lethargic he felt. Sent his pack out once to track down the chuunin's scent on two separate occasions, both times coming up with zilch. Passed the gate every other day after his trip to the memorial stone as if Iruka would just stroll through them without a care in the world. For some reason he couldn't place, he felt an irrational fear that Iruka wouldn't come back. As an elite ninja, he should have already considered the outcome and resigned himself to it.

However, the Copy-Nin was more stubborn than that. He clung on to the off chance the teacher would return. That one day they could go out again for a picnic on the roof under the stars, each sipping burning hot tea in chipped mugs to keep themselves warm.

He secretly hoped that Iruka would come back and they could once again spear fish by the waterfall. Kakashi had almost hit the good teacher in the face the first time he tried using kunai attached to chakra strings. But they'd laughed and ended up catching only a single fish because they soon stopped fishing and started rough-housing on top of the water.

The jounin refused to let go of the idea that the man would return and they could go snake-hunting again. That particular outing was more fruitful as they grabbed half-a-dozen decently sized snakes. Kakashi figured they could've caught more if they didn't make a competition of it, only to get so loud they scared most of the game off. Iruka seemed to like exploding tags when he got competitive, a trait that made Kakashi laugh once his vest was rid of fire.

Except hope seemed to dissipate when the other two men from the cell came back, bloody and beaten to a near death state. Two days in critical condition before they were in any state to debrief.

It turns out they were all captured and tortured by a group of unclassified ninja. The entire mission was a trap. Without forehead protectors and distinctive jutsu, it was impossible to identify the group. They survived—barely—through the weeks, and as they had just finally managed an escape the jail from a well-timed plan from Iruka himself, they were surrounded by half-a-dozen enemy ninja.

To save their lives, Iruka took the last of the soldier pills he had hidden in a false tooth, and then cloned himself and transformed into his team mates, and led away the pursuers by running away in another direction, diverting their attention from the weakened ninja hiding in the hollow of a tree.

It was amazing he had any chakra left after so long in captivity, (soldier pills worked by boosting the chakra you had, so to be effective, you needed some reserves), but Kakashi knew from reading his files that Iruka was careful with chakra control. It helped that they simply had their hands bound with chains, not chakra-suppressing stone cuffs. Perhaps Iruka stored his reserves more intently than the others, even through torture—suppressing the healing instinct of chakra would've stored up a lot, but the pain would have been immense. Captives should never have underestimated Kohona ninja—no matter the rank they bore.

All that happened at least a week ago—it took a long time for the other two in the cell to find their way back, disorientated and weak as they were.

Two three-man cells were immediately dispatched to find the hideout and obliterate the men. The Hokage had emphasized the orders particularly loudly in his frustration and anger.

Kakashi was strangely proud that Iruka would go to such lengths to protect his team mates, but he was more overwhelmingly angry. A part of him wished that he could blame the battered men who survived, but they were almost unconscious when Iruka left them safely in the tree hollow. He wanted to blame the Hokage, but how could they have foreseen how badly thing entire thing would turn out? And it helped that he knew the Hokage was just as upset about the man's disappearance as many of the Kohona ninja were. Still didn't stop his irrational anger though.

Perhaps he would've yelled at Iruka himself, but he wasn't here because of the fiasco.

So he did what any good ninja should. He pressed himself harder, running faster than Gai and Anko, who were now trailing behind him, leaping from tree to tree with such violence that leaves and branches shook. Following the sounds of his pack racing ahead of him, he plotted out his revenge for the men who killed the chuunin.

Revenge would take the form of letting them live—barely—so they could suffer at Ibiki's very capable hands.

Not that their pain would bring Iruka back. However, it was the principle of the matter that counted.

Empty. That was the only word Kakashi could use to sum up the feeling in his gut.

That, and pain.

But, like any good ninja, he was used to them both.

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: Ack, short chapter with slightly cliché occurences. *Sigh*. No Iruka here. Made me sad. Did it make you guys sad? Let's go kill those guys who even thought about touching Iruka!**

**Kakashi: Doesn't that include me?**

**Me: But I mean in a **_**bad**_** way, you idiot.**

**Kakashi: I don't know. Some of the things I've thought up could be classified as pretty **_**bad**_**...**

**Me: *Facepalm*. Anyway, please review! (Don't kill me for this chapter though…)**


	8. In Discovery

**A/N: Hooray! Iruka lives! But honestly, I mentioned ten moments in the summary; so was there any doubt in his return?**

**Disclaimer: Not mine at all. Well, the plot's mine, and so's the writing itself, but the characters and universe? Nope.**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

The eighth time Kakashi saw Iruka, he noticed—again—that the chuunin wasn't normal. That was the only way he could explain how the man survived. Against all odds, he survived. The eighth encounter was also when Kakashi first appreciated and realized exactly how much potential Iruka had for promotion.

Staring at the man, so bloody and battered, tired and bruised, lying in bed in a semi-conscious state, sent electric shocks down his spine and back up into his gut. He was so relieved that he was alive. Half-dead, alive, same difference; the lines were fairly blurred in the ninja world.

The tanned-skinned chuunin had escaped capture for three days, but eluded freedom on the fourth, being brutally recaptured. Instead of killing him, they took him back and tried out a few things in round two that baffled the medic-nin for hours on end. It was lucky the Leaf nin came when they did, because he was reaching the ends of his ropes. They had broken nearly every bone in his body. And they had used chakra-sealing cuffs this time around, so he wasn't able to use his chakra to alleviate the pain even the slightest.

Anko single-handedly killed six of them in a fit of pure, unadulterated rage, before gently hoisting the unconscious man on her back to bring back to the village.

Gai and Kakashi had no trouble what-so-ever in cleaning up the leftovers. But Ibiki had a few words about the conditions of the survivors. It really inconvenienced him to have to heal their jaws and their crushed throats so they could talk. However, his sadistic smile told the jounin that Ibiki wasn't that mad. He cared for Anko, and he knew Anko cared for Iruka. Kakashi did not envy what was coming up for the men in the jails.

The Copy-Nin only visited at night, because Iruka was swarmed with visitors during the day. For the first few days after he was released from intensive surgery, no one was allowed near his, sans an overwhelmingly protective duo comprised of Naruto and Anko, their mouths seemingly set in a permanent grimace of worry, and they released their frustrations on those who tried to see him. They wanted to wait until he woke up; they knew Iruka wouldn't like being paraded in such a state.

The first trickle of visitors were allowed when the patient first opened his eyes, the weak fluttering of his eyelids a depressingly slow gesture, but a sign of life all the same. Naruto learned boundaries that day, too—so overcome with relief, he had hastily embraced the chuunin the a death grip, forgetting that Iruka's left lung was pierced, slowly healing and that three of his ribs were still cracked, despite the ministrations of the doctors. It took two hours of Iruka convincing in a wincingly hoarse voice before Naruto trusted himself to even touch his teacher again.

Students, both former and current ones; colleagues at the academy; fellow chuunin; worried jounin; the Hokage; so many people passed through the door to make sure that, yes, the man really did survive. Even a few ANBU visited, but they didn't count because they simply asked for the mission details. Except Kakashi saw one of the masked females, in a cat-like mask, press a dried flower into the weakened chuunin's hand with a subtlety borne from years of practice when no one was paying attention. Well, except Kakashi of course.

The only time he was alone was when Anko and Naruto left to sleep and eat—orders of both the medic-nin and Iruka. Kakashi would wait a while before taking his place in the tree next to the window. Weak or not, Kakashi was fairly certain that the chuunin could feel his chakra signal, even as masked as it was. But since he didn't say anything about it, he didn't make a move to reveal himself.

The moonlight filling the small room bleached the colours of the flowers and gifts that surrounded the sleeping chuunin. On the table next to his head was littered a motley of roughly drawn sketches from his academy students. Shadows threw threatening images to the opposite wall, the branches tapping against the window looking something like dark, knobbly claws scraping at the glass.

"A full moon," Iruka sighed aloud, his voice clearer than it had been in days. "Could use some tea and company." Kakashi nearly started; he had assumed the man was asleep. Considering the bags constantly underneath his eyes, he certainly looked tired enough to need it.

However, the jounin said nothing but slipped inside the room lithely, standing with a slouch as he observed Iruka more closely in the moonlight. Skin and bones, taut muscles thinned with stress, limp strands of hair and a faded glint to his eye—Iruka had gone through so much.

His warm smile was no less brilliant, however.

"Thought you weren't meant to go on missions; you told me psych profile didn't recommend you." Kakashi remembered Iruka's words, and had stewed over them throughout the weeks.

"This mission wasn't highly ranked," the bedridden man explained. "If it went to plan, there wouldn't have been any trouble. But anyway, my mindset isn't built for assassinations and battle, but I never said I was weak against torture or interrogations." With that, the pair lapsed into an uneasy silence.

What made Kakashi's stomach plummet was the sheer number of bandages that covered the man. Umino wore no shirt, instead a thick layer of bandages covered him from his neck down to the ends of his fingers. They disappeared under his blankets, but he'd seen before how they stretched to his ankles.

"Done staring?" Iruka asked quietly, a sardonic quirk in his voice. His hands were lying limply in his lap, fingers thin and ragged, playing with a stray thread on his blankets.

"'M sorry," Kakashi finally said, his voice gruff, but you'd have to know him well to pick it up. _I should have gone out and found you. Should've searched. Could've._

"Yeah, I'm sorry, too," replied Iruka in a strangely mockingly bitter voice. "But no need to apologize for forgetting the tea. It's not your fault."

A strangled laugh nearly escaped Kakashi, but he reigned it in. "You think I'm apologizing for the tea?"

"You can't be saying sorry for the way the mission panned out. There was no way that you could have known. Anyway, I should be saying sorry for skipping out on the last few rooftop picnics. I missed those." Kakashi would've normally smiled at the way Iruka had mentioned their little nighttime rendezvous, but his mouth didn't seem to want to move.

Ever since their first encounter on the roof five months ago, they'd been meeting up a few times a month, regardless of the moon's progress, to share tea and conversation underneath the watchful gaze of the moon. Only last month, the meetings stopped 'cause of Iruka's M.I.A. status.

Kakashi loosened his jaw and spoke. "I missed them, too." There was a pause. Then, "I missed _you_ more though." The honesty was difficult, but he eventually managed the words.

"Fool," berated Iruka with a wry smile. "Don't need to state the obvious." His eyes danced with humor. Kakashi may have felt a pang of something unnameable, but he barely noticed because he was exalted in bringing that light into the younger man's eyes, which had dimmed considerably since his return.

"Aww," complained Kakashi, falling back into his teasing nature almost without thought, "and here I thought I was hiding it so well."

"You've been looking out for me ever night for the last week and a bit. That constitutes worry," Iruka pointed out blandly.

"You knew?" Contrary to his tone, Kakashi wasn't the least bit surprised.

"Since the first time you did it. Just 'cause I'm chuunin, it doesn't mean I can't spot a ninja hiding _that_ close to my window." The teacher smirked. "I can sense low levels of suppressed chakra well—how else can I find my students when they want to play hooky?"

"Why didn't you say anything before?"

"I was tired, I needed the sleep more than I could talk," explained Iruka. "That, and..." he paused before continuing, "I liked the idea you were out there protecting me."

"I'm glad you feel that way, because I'm going to keep a sharper eye on your back now."

A weak laugh escaped Iruka, his shoulders quivering with mirth as the light in his eyes danced some more. "Kakashi, while I appreciate the gesture, if you wanted to look at my butt, all you had to do was ask."

The jounin rolled his eyes, and mused aloud, "The drugs are getting to you. No way would Iruka-_sensei_ would dare imply such a thing."

"But I do have a pretty good butt, you have to admit," laughed Iruka, his voice growing weaker. "And you should know, the drugs are pretty good. But it still hurts. Hurts. Burns. Too hot, stings and licks like fire and ice." His words were becoming slurred, and Kakashi realized that his forehead gleamed in the light in a way it hadn't before. Three steps and one hesitant palm pressed to a forehead later, and Kakashi realized that Iruka had just slipped into a severe fever.

Moments later, medic-nin were called to the room—well, shoved in hastily by one flustered masked jounin—and Iruka's temperature was quickly stabilized while various liquids were being inserted into his IV drip. Bowing politely to the jounin, they left the room, wisely staying silent on the no-visitors rule, knowing better than to comment.

Another moment passed of silence before Kakashi pressed his palm to Iruka's forehead again. Normal temperature, even if he was still slightly damp with sweat. The Copy-Nin nearly sighed in relief.

Kakashi debated on staying by his bedside, but decided otherwise. He had to leave in the morning for an A-rank mission, and he really needed the sleep. Sparing a moment for one searching look at Iruka's now peaceful face, Kakashi left through the window, taking a less traveled path to the north, where the rooftops cracked and weaker than in other areas, but he wanted to take a longer path in the fresh, crisp, nighttime air to clear his head.

The soft thuds of footfalls sounded up from behind him, and Kakashi could tell from the light tread with consistent pace that they were female and at least over chuunin rank. He span around with a kunai raised in warning—even in his home village, he couldn't be too careful.

He didn't react otherwise to the sight of Anko standing a few feet behind him, her hands raised palm upwards in a very complacent gesture of peace. The way her chain mail shirt glowed in the moonlight was an oddly intriguing sight.

"What do I owe the pleasure, Anko?" The jounin was smooth, polite and calm, even though he was warily eying up the person standing before him. He had yet to lower his weapon.

"I know you've been looking over Iruka." The purple-haired woman was always blunt and straight to the point. There was something not wholly reassuring in her voice, but he lowered his blade an inch.

"Do you, now? For how long?" Kakashi's voice held an uninterested tone, as if he were simply humoring her.

"Since the day Iruka sent me home. I came back at night when he was asleep and found you in the tree I wanted to sit in." She crossed her arm and sent him a critical gaze.

"Are you mad?" asked Kakashi, wondering now why he was being cornered by the ninja.

Anko shrugged after a pause. "I think it's good he has someone."

"And when did I become 'someone'?" queried Kakashi with a single raised eye, his hair ruffling a bit in the wind that picked up leaves and swirled it around the two figures.

Hatake watched as Anko breathed heavily and resignedly through her nose. "Since you started dating."

_Wait. What? _"Excuse me? Iruka and I aren't dating." Kakashi's voice was flat and factual, even though he felt a bit like screaming objections. Thankfully he didn't cave into those immature reactions. He was a better ninja than that.

"I think you are." Her hands uncrossed and moved to her hips, her stance firming as she held her ground. "Wait, I _know _you two are."

"Wouldn't I know if I were?" argued Kakashi. He'd holstered his weapon and had straightened from his defensive crouch, but felt oddly exposed by the questions and accusations, and an irrational urge to throw a few kunai was overwhelming. The Copy-Nin felt no real danger, but he was certainly growing uncomfortable.

"Oh, come on, Kakashi. Wake up and smell the roses." Anko wasn't yelling, but was talking as if she was explaining something very simple to someone very slow. "Of your own free will, you spend time with him on a regular basis. In general, you hate socializing. But I was on my way to the Hokage one night and I saw you both on the roof sharing _tea_! Of all things!"

"We're friends."

"Friends don't share the looks you two give each other when you think no-one's looking."

"Sure they do," deadpanned Kakashi. Then he thought over what Anko said and frowned. "What looks?"

"If you don't know yet, then I can't tell you." Kakashi felt a vein on his forehead tick slightly in exasperation.

"All you've done is confuse the heck out of me," spat Kakashi, his temper momentarily flaring before settling down into apparent indifference. The hairs on the back of his neck were on end, whether in fury or fear, it was hard to tell. "Just hurry up and tell me what you came here to tell me," he rumbled deeply, his tone almost mistakable for a warning growl.

Cracking her knuckles slowly and methodically, the sound reverberating surprisingly loud in the quiet of the night, Anko smirked as she informed Kakashi, "I feel like it's my duty to roll off the usual spiel about how if you intentionally hurt Iruka, I will beat the living shit out of you. It will be painful and it will be a slow torture."

"You really think Iruka and I are a couple, don't you?" Kakashi mused out loud, unsure whether to scream or laugh at getting the protective sibling talk from Anko of all people. "But you know I wouldn't hurt anyone if I can."

"Sure, sure. Just thought you should know that I'll be watching, Ibiki's shown me a few new... tricks." Anko grinned menacingly.

Rolling his shoulders and gaining a few popping noises, Kakashi nonchalantly asked, "Does Iruka think we're dating?"

"Probably as clueless as you." Mitarashi rolled her eyes in disbelief while the jounin opposite to her just stared some more.

"Then what reason do you have to think we're a couple?"

There was a minute of silence. "You know what I said about secretive looks?" Anko started off quietly, her eyes boring into Kakashi's. "I knew you had to be more than friends when I saw how panicked and relieved and angry and happy you were when we found Iruka in the jail a while back. Friends don't show feelings quite like that. Not as intense as that"

Kakashi said nothing.

"Don't worry. Iruka has the same face when you come back from missions bleeding but smiling." Anko finally left, with the silence and finesse of a black cat disappearing into an alley way in the middle of the night.

Hatake sat in the moonlight a long while after that, deep in thought, only moving when the cold got to him, and when the light from the breaking dawn hit his face, it reminded him he had a mission to get to. As he started sprinting over tiles once more, his thoughts were filled with his conversation with Iruka and Anko, and questions on what it meant.

Fucked up. That was how Kakashi felt. Good or bad, it was hard to tell.

_Damn that Anko._

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: I love Anko when she's not portrayed as crazy-in-a-maniacal-laughter-sort-of-way.**

**By the way, two reasons for the late-ish update. Workload; now resolved as I'm on a two week holiday—but the other reason was because my email account was hacked. Urgh, I freaked for days thinking I wouldn't be able to recover it, but thank God I did. *Phew*.**

**Reviews would be appreciated. ^-^**


	9. State Of Equilibrium

**A/N: FINALLY!**

**Iruka: Finally what?**

**Me: ;-) You'll see...**

**Disclaimer: Property of the person who owns it. Which isn't me. By the way; does anyone read this? If so, honk. **

**¥¥Y¥¥**

The ninth time Kakashi saw Iruka was when he returned from his mission, slightly more beaten and bloody, but it was okay because most of the blood wasn't his. He strolled into the mission room, ignoring the slight throbbing of his ankle and moved to throw a scroll at the closest manned desk, but froze in place when he saw Iruka at his desk, calmly writing on some parchment.

"You cannot seriously believe you're fit for work," Kakashi blurted out dumbly as he watched Iruka stretch across the desk for another scroll, displaying his still heavily bandaged arm. The jounin noticed that the chuunin had yet to have all the bruising on his face fade, his cheekbones touched with the slightest plumpness from the swelling that was yet to go down. He was far from recovered.

Okay, perhaps he was over-exaggerating the amount of bruising, Kakashi admitted to himself, the swelling was practically imperceptible, and the bandages barely poked out from beneath the man's sleeve. But Kakashi worried, nonetheless.

Umino's eyes snapped up instinctively as he heard that familiar drawl of a voice. Kakashi couldn't help but glimpse something in the other man's eyes as he saw Kakashi was alright. Was that the face Anko was talking about? He couldn't tell because the chuunin quickly looked down to finish writing up something with fumbling fingers. His fingers were literally snapped to bits in torture, and Iruka was really pushing himself. No way could they be healed yet.

Kakashi selectively forgot that the medic-nin were very capable at fixing finger bones, a common injury in their line of work. Worry did that to people.

Before Iruka could answer, Genma piped up from behind a desk littered in paper. "Stubborn bastard won't listen. He'd been released two days ago, and he came into work yesterday as well. And you know how conniving he is! We can't get rid of him."

"Ungrateful idiot," Iruka snapped. "You just told me how thankful you were for the help."

"Yeah, but after I insisted for ages that you go home and rest," pointed out Genma. Kakashi almost laughed at the stubborn expression on Iruka's face, but he was seething at the fact that the man, who by all accounts deserved some good bed rest, thought it was best to be up and about.

"That's it, you're coming with me," Kakashi decided immediately, throwing his half-heartedly scrawled mission scroll on the desk before walking behind it and grabbing Iruka's arm. The chuunin yelped in discomfort and obvious argument, but he couldn't do much more because the jounin had teleported him back to an unfamiliar apartment.

As the silver-haired man looked around, he cursed quietly, "Damn it. Sorry Iruka. I was trying to send you home, but of course I don't know specifically where you live, and when the word home pops up, I think of here..."

"So this is where you live?" Iruka paused mid-thought with interest. He was about to go off at Kakashi with his temper at near tipping point from being unceremoniously taken from his workplace—against his will, no less—but this new tidbit of information was certainly too interesting to pass up.

The place was small, tidy with the air of uniformity borne from being usually empty, the air dry and crisp, oddly reminiscent of the smell of miso soup. Strangely enough, it wasn't sterile or cold, the walls painted with tasteful earthly colours, giving the home a dimension of warmth. There were not many signs of personal belongings, but there were the odd book or scroll here and there indicating that this place was indeed owned by someone.

A framed oil painting of the forests surrounding Kohona dominated one of the walls, while some not-so-decorative swords lined another. The kitchen had signs of wear and tear, the hanging pots tarnished and dented. On the drying rack next to the sink were several colourful dog bowls, each with individual patterns and names, and the fridge held funny little magnets easily recognized as figures from the _Icha Icha_ series. Iruka nearly smiled outright at the sight of the sheets covering Kakashi's bed, the marks of throwing stars reminding him of the pattern he had as a child.

"It ain't much, but it's home. Sort of," Kakashi replied off-handedly as he took a step back from the other man. They had been standing quite close to each other and neither had really realized it until Kakashi felt the warmth seeping from the chuunin through his cold uniform.

Stepping back allowed Kakashi to see the small spot of blood appearing on the crisp white bandages covering Iruka's wrist. The teacher didn't notice it himself, but the Copy-Nin furrowed his brow in worry.

"Damn it. Sorry Iruka," apologized Kakashi hastily. "I didn't know you were so bent out of shape that you bleed when you teleport."

Finally looking down and noticing the slight reopening of his wounds, Iruka frowned. Then he said, "It's hardly anything worth fussing over. Kakashi, you don't have to treat me like I'm made of glass. I'm a tough ninja like anyone else."

"No!" barked Kakashi in a knee-jerk reaction. Promptly, he felt contrite and wanted to retract his words. But the damage was done.

"What?" exclaimed Iruka, the first tint of red appearing in his cheeks, a warning of the anger to come. "Because I'm a chuunin or something, does that mean I'm weak? You and I both know that's _bullshit_, Kakashi."

"No," repeated Kakashi weakly. "I mean, I just meant to say—"

"Say what? That I'm not good enough to be ninja because I'm a teacher of pre-genin?" Iruka, whether intentionally or not, was growing louder and louder. His fists were clenched tightly by his sides, and the spot of crimson on his neck was spreading slowly.

The jounin was tired, but he tried again to explain, "Iruka, listen, that's not what I said. What I meant was that I just don't ever—"

"Think of me as a worthy ninja?" incorrectly finished Iruka, assuming some of the worst things from Kakashi's clumsy and stunted words.

"Goddammit, NO!" bellowed Kakashi finally, snapping and pulling at his hair in frustration. "I just don't ever want to see you that beaten and crushed ever again. Can you believe how much it fucking _hurt_ to see you like that? I don't want to see you go through something like that ever again! Understand, Iruka? It hurts too damn much for you _and_ me."

Brown eyes stared at him in amazement. Grey eyes returned the gaze with horror as he heard what he had just said. Even with the mask in place, you could see the worry creeping over the taller man.

Iruka was quiet, but he sat down, now docile. Patting the worn couch, he gestured that Kakashi join him. He chose not to, rather standing and panicking at what to do.

"While I appreciate the concern, I am stronger than that. You don't need to treat me special."

Kakashi had nothing to say in response, thinking it was smarter to stay silent. Of course he'd given Anko's words a great deal of thought over the course of his mission, when he could spare the time to think. Iruka was something special, even if the chuunin didn't think he was. But Kakashi felt awkward at how to word it. Was it friendship? Kinship? Or more? There were too many variables to consider and—

"Now that we've cleared that up, let's go have something to eat. I'm hungry."

"Huh?"

"Well, I'm assuming that you won't let me go back to work, and I'm thinking that we could go and catch up. You've been away for three weeks, and counting my time out on an extended mission, we haven't properly talked since... well, over two months and a bit now."

"I talked to you in hospital," Kakashi pointed out.

Iruka frowned. "I don't remember most of that though. All I can recall is talking about you protecting me outside my window..."

"Well," Kakashi drawled slowly, the beginnings of a feral smile tugging at his covered lips, "it was before you slipped into an intense fever, but you confessed your undying love for me, and pledged to be my sex slave for the rest of your life." The jounin was particularly proud to have pulled that all off with a straight face.

"Hmm, of course that sounds like me," Iruka took the time to roll his eyes, "but I think I'll have to call your bluff on that."

The Copy-Nin sighed theatrically before admitting, "Okay, you may not have worded it exactly like that... You passed out before we got to the interesting bits. However, you did spend a while talking about the fact you have a nice ass."

"Crap, damn my good memory. It's coming back to me," groaned Iruka around a smile. "I actually remember that bit now. In my defense, I was off my rocker on drugs."

"My, my," laughed the jounin. "So defensive! I never disagreed with you though." The chuunin looked up with a brief flash of surprise before nodding sagely.

"I am quite a fine specimen," he noted seriously before breaking into peals of laughter. "Come on, let's go eat before I say something I'll regret."

"Please not ramen," Kakashi warned as they headed out of his apartment, sparing a moment to lock up the place with a blast of concentrated chakra, resetting traps while Iruka politely turned his head the other way.

As they started to walk, Iruka shook his head and said, "Just because I treat Naruto to the stuff, doesn't mean I'm as obsessed as he is. I know this small diner that's a bit of a pain to get to—it's in the middle of a maze of criss-crossing roads—but the food is to die for."

Kakashi smiled. "That sounds nice," he commented as they climbed the stairs of the apartment building to start their journey across the rooftops. It was around midday, but the weather was cold as the rainclouds gathered, and his nose twitched as he smelled the increase of humidity in the air. He knew that soon the skies would open and the water would pour down to turn the world as they saw it into a bleak gray. But, he couldn't help but laugh along with the chuunin when the first few drops splattered on them, and race childishly from roof-to-roof in a pointless, meaningless race to their restaurant.

Iruka was right; the place was a pain to get to, a small shop hidden between a high brick wall and an abandoned music store, masked from plain view from ghastly shadows, curtains blocking any light that would've streamed through the dirty display window. Judging from its appearance and the neighborhood, Kakashi was initially skeptical about it, but took it all back as he stepped through the door.

"Welcome to the Autumn Apple restaurant."

Earthly colours dominated the warm surroundings, and though he'd never been there before, it immediately had that sense of familiarity to it. It was half-filled with quiet yet constantly murmuring patrons, gathered in couples or groups of four or five, a scant handful on their own. There were low tables decorated with gray sheets, all dispersed erratically in a dimly lit room smelling of wood smoke and charred vegetables, while the aroma of the burning scented candles placed on each table hung thickly in the air.

Against the fair wall stood a raised podium where a small quartet was playing some thrumming, almost hypnotic music, reminiscent of jazz mixed with blues. Lyrics flowed from the singer like heated honey, and they spoke of the beauty of the world. Even the staff seemed to move in time with the music as they maneuvered their way deftly from table to table, handling fiddly dishes of broth and noodles, stir-fry vegetables and plates of jasmine rice, pots of warm tea and bottles of beer or water, with an ease borne from experience.

A few windows were placed around the medium-sized room, all providing easy access in case an escape route was needed, but all were cloaked with dark, heavy drapes, blocking any light from the outside to stream in and break the ambiance of the restaurant. In the east-most corner was the door to the kitchen, a stream of barely-visible silver smoke passing through and dissipating quickly into the air.

The place wasn't dirty, but neither was it clean. Silverware placed on tables were dull and barely reflected the flickering candlelight, and the tablecloths had the shadows of past stains and burn marks from melted wax. Underfoot, there was what would have once been a lush carpet, now stampeded from numerous feet over an extended period of time, lay flattened and darker than what it was originally.

Decorative paintings, framed with simple cherry wood, lined the walls, a variety of styles and images captured Kakashi's attention as they were ushered into a small booth-like table. Both were handed a small menu, dog-eared at the corners, yellowed and frayed from years of abuse.

As soon as they were left alone, Kakashi immediately exclaimed—quietly, of course—that he found the institution to be a perfect meal place. Iruka simply smiled in a knowing manner, and advised him to hold his compliments until he tried the food.

"Mmm," groaned Kakashi appreciatively as he leaned back in his chair, his plate spotless before him. "Damn it if that wasn't one of the best meals I've had in a long time."

"This place is owned by a friend of mine. He knows what ninja like," Iruka informed as he absentmindedly played with his beer bottle, his finger tracing the rim round and round, over and over again. "Can't you tell by the layout of the place? It's safe, secluded, and dimly lit."

"Ex-ninja?" Kakashi hazarded a guess.

Shaking his head, Iruka replied, "He's a civilian, but his wife was one. Killed in action. This was built in her memory. Her dream was to retire when she had enough money and to open up a restaurant like this." A soft sigh passed his lips, echoing the sadness of his words.

Curious, the jounin pushed the conversation subtly in another direction. "How do you know a civilian?"

Raising an eyebrow silently, Iruka answered almost defiantly, "I usually tutor in the orphanages every second weekend. The owner of this place also feeds the kids there, free-of-charge. We became pretty well acquainted when we spent a few weekends working together to teach the children how to cook some basics by themselves." His face visibly softened as he remembered something, presumably the children he taught outside the academy.

"I never knew you tutored orphans," Kakashi almost-mumbled. Perhaps it was the belly of warm food, the slight buzz from the alcohol, or the smell of scented candles; maybe it was the hypnotic gaze of the flickering flames of the trance-like music that surrounded them, but the Copy-Nin felt an inner peace that he'd been missing for a long time.

"I never knew that when completely relaxed and slightly tipsy from beer," the chuunin pointed out slyly, "you look like a content cat—and if you purred, the picture would be perfect."

No, he realized drowsily, blinking owlishly at Iruka when the teacher laughed. It wasn't the surroundings that had him so happy; it was the company. _I like Iruka more than a friend, don't I...? _In reaction to this revelation, the jounin simply smiled and joined in with the muted laughter of the other. Something in him relaxed. The idea was sort-of startling, but more comforting than unsettling. Realization bloomed with the same feeling that it was something he'd known all along.

It was kind of a relief to know he could feel something for another human being that passed the safe realm of friendship. He'd admittedly been a little fucked in that department since his father—maybe even before that incident. Well, his childhood was certainly warped. Early promotion ensured that.

He wondered what the village's reaction would be like should he care enough to publicize his sudden epiphany. He knew Gai would be happy in his own eccentric way. Kakashi learned long ago that if he picked out every third or fourth word of his flowery, overly-enthusiastic speeches, he could gather the deeper meaning . Asuma would probably snort and offer a cigarette, even though Kakashi had always turned them down. Naruto... Well, Kakashi would stuff him full of ramen before branching that topic. Maybe train him to the ground so he doesn't have the energy to fight.

Perhaps the elders would stop harassing him to breed and make some heirs to his bloodline. Or maybe they'd grow more desperate. Mentally, he shrugged off the brief bloom of concern. _They can suck my—_the jounin stopped himself mid-thought. Kakashi knew his files listed him as straight. Staring into Iruka's eyes, he mentally noted he needed to change that as soon as possible—Ibiki always was a stickler for files being as up-to-date and as accurate as possible.

There was no such thing as perfect, but while sitting in a secluded booth, talking to one of the most intriguing people he had been acquainted with, and feeling comfortable and sated from food and conversation, Kakashi almost believed there was.

He thought it couldn't get any better; that is, until, Iruka leaned over the booth and pressed their lips together, softly. Warmth passed through the thin material of his mask and seemed to sear his skin all over.

Kakashi didn't even blink before he started returning the tentative soft pressure.

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: Aww. Sweetness and utter fluff. I adored writing the date part of this. Even though neither of them intended it to be a date, but a little bit of alcohol and DING! We're in business!**

**Should I continue or skip the smexy details of the kiss? Thoughts on this would be welcomed. Let's leave it up to a vote from reviewers.**


	10. On The Side

**A/N: Just like to say that the guys aren't drunk, just buzzed. There's a difference I'd like to clarify. And ninja, I'd expect, would be able to think clearly enough under a light influence. Alcohol didn't change their views, just lowered their barriers.**

**(Note: previous chapters have been Kakashi-centric. I'm trying something new by flipping it to the smexy teacher's point of view).**

**Sorry in advance that it's so short—I'm back doing work, again. =.=" *Sigh*. **

**Disclaimer: Don't own or make money from this. But damn it, if I did, what you're reading would be canon all the way.**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

It wasn't rushed, like he thought it would be. There was no disappointment, thankfully, in something that seemed to have been in the works for months now. Their kiss wasn't the work of a greater force or anything, Iruka knew that, it was nothing inevitable; things easily could've changed course and the planet would've kept spinning regardless. But Iruka felt that the world should have done something when it happened; paused, stopped, hell—even jumped around and dance for joy.

Nothing happened though; patrons continued eating, listening to music and talking amiably. It wasn't as if Kakashi and Iruka were the only two people using their mouths for something other than eating and talking. But it didn't really matter either way; the indifference in reaction from the outside world did nothing to burst their little bubble of warmth cocooning them in their secluded table.

He tasted cloth briefly, when he first gathered the courage to initiate the contact, part of it boosted from alcohol and the smoky air, and he felt thin lips response to his gentle pressure, but he tasted honey and soy when Kakashi pulled down his mask to allow their lips proper contact. Iruka was glad that he didn't need to kiss a mask, and tilted his head to deepen the kiss.

Kakashi responded in kind, and with a type of muted enthusiasm did they explore each other, softly and gently. Enough time in each other's company let Iruka know that the man smelt of sandalwood and parsley, yet when brought together in such close quarters, he could pick out the faint scent of jasmine soap. The jounin hummed from deep within his throat and sucked at Iruka's bottom lip, nipping at it teasingly.

The chuunin felt so warm, relaxed and content to a degree that he'd long forgot even existed. In a daze, time passed in a swirl of sounds and colours, impressions flying by without even a nod of acknowledgment from either man. They were having far too much fun kissing from across the table.

Neither could be sure when they started using their tongues, casually wetting one another's lips and tasting salt and coriander from their previous meals. Languidly they battled and teased one another for the upper hand, neither really caring either way. Iruka felt the way Kakashi's lips were raised at the corners, and felt himself smiling, too, indescribably happy.

A gloved hand brushed his cheek, the rough material scraping but oddly reassuring, and finally the jounin pulled back, his single visible eye bright in the dimness of the room, shining from a certain dazed glee. Iruka could feel how his cheeks were flushed, how his lips were slightly swollen, and how a few stray hairs broke free of their bindings. Except all he cared about was the bubbling warmth in his chest that swirled around and made him feel light and slightly giddy. Perhaps a bit of that was thanks to the alcohol.

_What a dorky smile_, Iruka barely had the chance to think fondly before being pulled willingly into another kiss, slightly fiercer than the first, though no more rushed. A quiet satisfied rumbling came from his chest, the teacher returning the affections with ease. He brushed away some stray hair from Kakashi's face, and let his hand rest there, let the warmth seep into the skin of the other.

A light pressure found its way on top of it, and he noted dimly, in the corner of his mind, that Kakashi was holding his hand there, as if to keep it in place. Something primal liked this thought, and Iruka pushed a little harder to gain dominance in the kiss—not that it seemed as though Kakashi minded at all, as he sunk a little more in his chair, lips still tweaked upwards in an unconventional, lopsided grin.

They were hidden from view from most of the other customers of the restaurant; their booth propped against a wall, shadowed nicely and had the added benefit of a decorative statue in their path of the front door. So it was without reservation that Kakashi leapt over their table swiftly, joining the chuunin on the other side, their hands now making their wandering way across their entwined bodies.

While self-restraint kept them from literally climbing into one another's laps, they were certainly more than close enough to feel the heat seeping through their clothes, to feel the rise and fall of their chests with every heavy breath they took, gasping between delicious kisses. Through lidded eyes, Kakashi looked particularly marvelous to the chuunin, panting and smiling and flushed with a tint of red on his alabaster skin.

As Kakashi ducked his head down, Iruka was faced with mass of silvery spikes of hair, a quiet gasp escaping him as the man started to suck on his neck, right above his pulse. Immediately, the chuunin threaded his hands in the mess of hair, feeling how strangely coarse and thin they were. It was difficult to hold back the moan at the feeling of moist lips on his neck, and the warm fingers dancing over his exposed skin with a feather touch.

Iruka remembered a trick he learned years back, and accordingly moved his hand smoothly up the jounin's back, smiling as he jabbed at a cluster of nerves near the shoulder, grinning when he felt a shudder rip through the man's spine.

"What was that," murmured Kakashi huskily against the teacher's lips, his hands getting slightly more frantic and his eye suddenly less drowsy and far too bright, "not that it matters," he paused to steal another long, hard kiss, "but I want you to do it again."

For a while, Iruka couldn't answer, his mouth occupied with far better things than talking, his fingers scrabbling on the rough material of the jounin vest, a long-fingered hand creeping its way up his shirt proving to be awfully distracting.

"It's a pleasure nerve center in your back," Iruka finally answered as he pressed his lips against Kakashi's neck, his fingers wandering as he looked for another spot. "Isn't it sad that ninja are taught the pain clusters, but never the pleasure clusters?"

"You could teach me any day, _sensei_," Kakashi leered at the smaller man, teeth flashing as he grinned with a feral kind of lust, muffling a groan when Iruka pressed the small of his back with a pinch of chakra, hitting a certain delicate spot.

Nipping at the jounin's ear, Iruka purred, "Let's get out of here, and I'll be happy to give you a _private, hands-on_ session, free-of-charge."

He barely registered the when Kakashi threw some notes down on the table, effectively covering the price of the meal along with a rather reasonable tip for their waitress. All he felt was arms tightening around him as the jounin hastily threw together the hand signs and teleported them to a familiar apartment.

"You didn't even ask 'My place or yours?'" Iruka laughed as the smoke cleared, the noise turning into a moan with surprising swiftness as Kakashi grabbed the back of his head and crushed their lips together, multi-tasking as he deftly removed his own vest before working on taking off Iruka's forehead protector and hair-tie.

Smirking, he said, "I'm sure my house is more than fine for what I have in mind. You were saying something about a 'private, hands-on session'?"

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: Totally skipped out on writing the lemon because I'm terrible like that. But I'd love it if someone continued this and wrote it as a belated birthday present for me. Give them a happy ending, catch my drift? *Hint*. So, anyway; thoughts on this?**

**Iruka: Well, I rather enjoyed it.**

**Kakashi: I enjoyed what you didn't write a fair bit more. ;-)**

**Me: Ending on an innuendo seems pretty good to me. Thanks for reading!**

**Side note: no, this isn't the final chapter—think of it as chapter 9.5. And yes, there'll be an epilogue, so the total chapter count will be 12. Got it all lined up on my computer. ^-^**


	11. Pack Meeting

**A/N: Fluffy with an insert of pack action. Enjoy!**

**I blame the slight update delay in biting off far more than I can chew at the moment. *Sigh*. Too much to do, too little time to do it in. **_**AvacadoLove**_**, know it was you who kicked my ass into gear with that comment that seemed so offhand about updating, it made me crack up and start working! Weird how the world works, ne?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. But, the idea of having to draw, edit, clean and write a chapter every week makes me blanch. I love drawing, but as a time-sensitive job? Urgh.**

**¥¥Y¥¥**

The tenth time Iruka changed in Kakashi's eyes was when they were in the forest, walking quietly in the shade of the tall trees. They both were duty and work free for an entire day, such an occurrence coinciding with the other's taking a bit of work from both parties.

And the trouble was worth it, thought the older of the two, as he listened to Iruka breathe from beside him, the birds cawing softly from above, noting how the dappling sunlight created a serene environment.

The pair were walking off the large lunch they'd had, on the widest branch two-thirds of the way up on one of the tallest tress in the Konoha forest.

It was an unconventional picnic that required a fair amount of nifty maneuvering and quite a bit of chakra control to get the basket up that high without spilling anything. The view made it all up though, as they both watched the village from a vantage point few would have reason to use.

"I haven't seen the sunset so clearly in _years_. It's beautiful. How'd you find this place?"

"It was a good hiding place when I was running from the angry mob that usually were hit with the butt-end of my pranks."

"Only you, Iruka."

When they finished, they lingered as long as they could before they climbed down and went for a walk through the forests. Coming to a partial clearing, Kakashi decided it was about time to do what he'd been planning on doing for a while.

While there was no official label on what they were, the Copy-Nin knew that the last month of rushed kisses, shared laughs, slow and lazy brushes of warm lips on skin, sly gazes from across the room, hot hands touching and grabbing, hard bodies clashing for dominance, quiet whispers in the night as they lay together with foreheads touching—they had been some of the best moments in his life. He did not need a title on what they were, and he knew Iruka didn't either.

Breaking the silence, Kakashi quietly asked, "Iruka?"

The younger man replied without tearing his gaze from the skies. "Yes, Kakashi?"

The Hatake decided it was best to slowly start the conversation on something easier."Why do you always seem to walk on my left side?" Not to mention, since he'd noticed this, he had been honestly very curious.

"Do you mind it?"

"No, merely curious."

"Call me a sentimental fool, but I like walking on the left side of someone I care about, simply because it's that little bit closer to your heart."

"Oh." Completely stunned and rather touched, Kakashi froze in his steps for the slightest of pauses before continuing, saying, "I wouldn't call you a fool at all."

They were content, but Kakashi decided it was time he introduced Iruka to the pack. They deserved to meet such an amazing man. Not to mention, if Iruka was going to date Kakashi, he'd need to accept every part of him—pack included.

Anyway, the meeting had to happen sooner or later, and sooner was usually better than later. Though, if he were being completely honest with himself, (which he wasn't), Kakashi was quite nervous on how Iruka would be received.

Taking a deep breath, the jounin steeled himself and spoke with a slightly rushed voice. "Iruka, I need to talk to you about something."

"Well, that doesn't sound daunting at all," Iruka inserted sarcastically, corners of the lips tugged upwards in a faint, content smile.

"Depends on how you look at it," Kakashi admitted with a shrug.

"What is it?" He turned in time to see the chuunin sigh, the smile still on his lips, arms crossed behind his head as he tilted it to stare at the canopy of leaves above them.

"I want you to meet my, well, family of sorts. I've got some summons that I've raised since I was little; you've met Pakkun before, I think, but there's quite a few more than that. Just keep eye-contact, and they won't attack," Kakashi half-joked, rubbing the skin of his cheek awkwardly, feeling naked skin there, a slightly disorientating feeling on the lower part of his face where cloth had covered for so long.

He had quickly disregarded hiding his face around Iruka. Funny thing was, the teacher barely seemed to change when he did. There were no side glances at his face, no comments about his appearance. Just a small smile of acknowledgment at the trust from the action and nothing more. Thinking about it made a small bubble of warmth burst within him.

"Okay, I'd love to see them." His eyes seemed black from where Kakashi was standing, but Iruka's gaze was unfailingly warm as usual.

Kakashi pulled out his scroll and made a small cut on his thumb, noticing the slightest change of expression on Iruka's face. Almost like a dawning realization. "Iruka? You know how summons are called, right?"

"Hmm?" Iruka blinked once, twice, before seeming to come back to earth. "No—I mean, yes, of course I know, I'm a teacher, I have to know, but it's just that where you cut to draw the blood explains why there are so many calluses and scars on your fingers; mainly, I'd observed, on your thumbs."

Cocking an eyebrow, Kakashi stared at the chuunin for a heartbeat before smearing his bloodied thumb over the summoning scroll, smiling slightly as he did.

"What?" Iruka narrowed his eyes at the other man. "How was I meant to know about your fingers being where you draw blood? I was always taught to draw blood from the middle of my palm if the need ever came up!"

Kakashi laughed and said, "There's nothing wrong with your observation. You're correct that it's generally better to draw blood from the palm, but I was just smiling over the fact that you noticed something so small in the first place."

Iruka's expression was mingled parts of mollified and touched and amazed, and perhaps even some parts in-between.

It never ceased to amaze Kakashi just how many tiny details Iruka remembered about him, how they'd casually be brought up, unconsciously on the smaller man's half, always so noticeable by Kakashi. No one else but the chuunin knew him without the mask so thoroughly. It almost scared him how much Iruka knew, and it was terrifying how much he _mattered_. And it had only been a month.

He was falling hard for Iruka, but Kakashi couldn't regret it. Never ever. He couldn't remember being quite so happy for a long time.

Clouds of billowing smoke surrounded him as he finished the hand signs, a light breeze helping it clear away to reveal a pack of shaggy, unclean dogs – which reminded the jounin it would be bath time for the dogs soon, and that was always a "fun" (if not mildly life-threatening) experience.

Clearing his throat, he indicated vaguely, "Iruka, meet the pack. Pack, meet Umino Iruka."

When the chuunin's attention was diverted at taking in his multiple dogs, he shot them all a look; a very specific look that said, _Don't you fucking dare scare him off_. Of course, he knew that while he was the summoner, he really had no control over them, being grateful for their loyalty and co-operation. They weren't _normal_ dogs, after all. Nothing like the animals you could train into complete obedience. However, he knew that they'd test Iruka, as they would another dog entering a pack. It was natural for them, and he could only hope Iruka passed the rites of passage.

"So," drawled Pakkun, once the prompt introductions were come and met, Iruka familiarizing himself with their names while they circled him, taking in his scent and stance. "You're the boss' new mate." Small as he was, the little dog held an air of authority, addressing the human first out of all his peers. He scratched behind his ear with a gray paw, unwavering in his gaze as he waited patiently for an answer.

Rather than the imagined blush that Kakashi assumed would cross Iruka's cheeks—the same one he wore when he was flushed or feeling particularly cheeky—Iruka stood his ground, crossed his arms, and nodded.

"But for the record, I'm not the bitch, you hear?" Then he smirked and turned to wink slyly at the jounin standing behind him.

Kakashi laughed as a bit of tension wore away and he fell into his natural slouch, though still watching the circling dogs with a bit more wariness than normal. He'd talked to them about meeting the schoolteacher before, but they didn't seem to listen well to his descriptions since the slight widening of their eyes held honest surprise, and distinct approval.

Akino was always rather curious, and he pawed his glasses higher on his snout before asking, "You are quite a _brown_ human, aren't you?"

"Compared to Kakashi, anyone is tanned," shrugged Iruka as he sunk into a crouched position so the dogs could see him better at eye level. "How about you? What's up with the glasses?"

Huffing, Akino sat stiffly with poised grace, eying the chuunin through his sunglasses. Kakashi wasn't worried at him rejecting Iruka. He was always rather warm for his initial cold and polite demeanor. Though, it was a slight bit disconcerting how long they were staring at one another.

"Boss gave them to me," Akino answered finally, nodding at the chuunin in acceptance.

Iruka smiled, whole and innocent, replying, "They suit you."

Interrupting whatever the teacher was about to say next was Urushi, who blandly stated, "I don't like you."

Kakashi frowned and shot a glare at the dog, before grimacing when he saw that Shiba was next to him, nodding sagely. On the other hand, Iruka didn't look offended, merely curious.

"Urushi... Can I ask why?" he ventured slowly.

Urushi nodded. "Yep."

"Are you going to tell me?"

"Sure." The usual grin on his dog's face was taking on a slightly feral slant.

"Okay, why aren't you telling me?" Iruka had enough patience to work with a room full of children, so it wasn't surprising his face was still calm, rather than annoyed.

"You haven't asked," Shiba pointed out blandly from behind Urushi. _Damn pups, _groaned Kakashi inwardly.

"What?" Iruka thought back on his words and suddenly laughed. "Alright then. Dogs that like wordplay; I can work with that. Anyway, why do you dislike me?"

"Because when boss visits us after visiting you, he smells like he just mated," informed Urushi bluntly.

"We have very sensitive noses, even for ninken," quickly added Shiba. "His hormones fluctuate freakishly for a human male, and we've decided it is because of your influence."

"Is that so?" Iruka's eyes seemed to widen a touch too much for pure innocence. He sighed theatrically, before nodding slowly. "I see. If that's the case, I'll just stop the cause of the smell, and we'll be good?"

"NO!" blurted out Kakashi, before he remembered himself. "I mean," he started awkwardly, slightly discomforted with the gazes of his multiple dogs and his lover staring at him with horror and amusement, respectively. "If Iruka stops, I won't be happy. And when I'm not happy, I'll take on missions that include mud, and then summon you. Which smells worse? A happy boss or a stinky swamp?"

"Kakashi, it's all right. I want your family to accept me," Kakashi noticed how the dogs perked up at the use of the word 'family', "so it'll be no _huge_ sacrifice..."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "Are you implying something?"

"Maybe." If he and Iruka were alone, that cheeky smile probably would have made Kakashi tackle him and kiss him senseless, before debating whether or not to strip him of his clothes. While voyeurism wasn't something he was against, he doubted his dogs would feel the same way.

Shiba looked at Urushi, who shrugged at the human bickering. Growling in a non-threatening manner to grab attention, Shiba finally conceded, "Okay, Umino. We can see that it isn't your fault. We don't mind your relationship with boss then. But boss, _shower_ before you summon us if it's going to be like that, okay?"

Iruka nodded, and inserted, "And that doesn't mean interrupting me when I'm having one, either." His mouth was open to add more, but Bisuke, a runt almost as small as Pakkun, nudged at Iruka's arm, his wet nose sniffing at the skin rather interestedly.

"Hello, Bisuke." Damn, Iruka was good at remembering their names; his excellent memory was certainly handy here, mused Kakashi. Many of the times he'd brought them out on missions and introduced them to team mates, their names would be confused very early on. He rarely liked showing them off individually these days anyway.

Instead of replying politely, Bisuke remained quiet, only nudging again at Iruka, this time nosing his palm. Iruka took the hint, sitting down cross-legged, and started scratching behind his ears, grinning when the dog crawled into his lap and almost crooned at the attention. _How a man scratches his dog is the only way to judge their character_; wasn't that what Bisuke liked to think?

"Be careful, Iruka. That one's a little spoiled. Don't give into his demands too much now," Kakashi warned with warmth lacing his tone.

Coughing, Bisuke shuffled his legs a bit and huffed, "You're only jealous. Though I can see why. He scratches good-like."

"Thanks, little one," Iruka replied with a laugh in his voice. "Your ears are really soft, you know?"

The expression on Bisuke's face was as close as you could get to a legitimate doggy-smile. "Softest in the pack." A minute later, he fell asleep, humming contently on the teacher's lap. That showed trust. Well, Bisuke trusted Kakashi, and he had said he trusted the chuunin with his life if worst came to worst, and took his word at face value. Anyway, the rest of the pack circled him, so the pup was safe as he could get.

"Hmph," Guruko grumbled after pawing at his forehead protector. "Brat is picky, sleeps too much and has bags under his eyes when he doesn't. Why does boss keep him?"

Uhei, without tearing his watchful gaze from the chuunin, replied, "He's a good chakra sensor. Boss needs him sometimes. Deal with it." Kakashi knew that Uhei had a bit of a soft spot for Bisuke. He was like the protective older brother of that little runt. Actually, he was pretty sure that they were technically second cousins, twice removed or something. In his group, they were the closest to being blood related.

From Kakashi's shoulder, Pakkun barked, "Without him, boss wouldn't make that nice chowder we like. Only Bisuke can make him budge and get us the food, you realize." The weight of his closest ninken was soothing, and it was so natural for him to be there, he had barely registered when Pakkun had climbed on.

"Guruko, you know there's nothing wrong with a little nap every now and then," Kakashi added, with a little sing-song lilt that he knew would irritate his dog to no end.

"Whipped. He has y'all whipped, I tell you," complained Guruko. If Kakashi didn't raise them himself, he'd wonder whether that was true antagonism lacing his tone. Thankfully, all it happened to be was general inter-pack moaning and groaning.

"_You!_" Iruka started slightly when Guruko turned his attentions to him; Bisuke was still sleeping soundly on his lap. "If _he_ gets his ears scratched, I want in."

Without hesitating, Iruka opened his arms, and soon Guruko was leaning against his side, tail happily thumping the ground in a repetitive beat. Shiba and Urushi, who had been plodding along around the congregation, stopped, and cocked their heads to the side, watching the scene intently.

A soft, rough voice interrupted the momentary peace and quiet.

"He smells honest. And he's funny for a human. I like him." A pause followed, until...

"Holy crap! That's the first time Bull's talked in _months_," Urushi exclaimed, the others eying the great beast of a dog with bright eyes. He was sitting a distance from the rest of the group, seeming impassive with droopy eyes and bland disposition, but Bull was merely a dog of few words.

"Language, Urushi," berated Kakashi lightly.

"Hypocrisy, boss. I learned my best from you, remember?"

Something in the air lightened, perhaps it was Kakashi's quiet chuckles, or maybe it was Bull's blessings, but all of the pack seemed to relax wholly around Iruka. And the jounin was relieved. Iruka accepted his family and his family accepted Iruka.

In the life of a ninja, not many things went perfectly, but today was an exception to the rule for Kakashi. As he watched Iruka smiling and talking _to_ his dogs, and not _down_ to them like so many others might, he felt a welling of pure happiness.

¥¥Y¥¥

They were walking home, Iruka on the left side of Kakashi, close enough that their arms brushed against each other's constantly, but they didn't hold hands. They didn't need to.

"Now that the pack likes you, you're never going to be able to escape me, you know that, right?" Hands in pockets, shoulder slumped, visible eye creased in a happy inverted 'u' shape; Kakashi seemed a mixture of relaxed and happy.

"Yep. I don't care, though." Iruka's pants were covered in dog hair, but he didn't seem to care at all.

"Good. You're nice to have around. You're funny, easy on the eyes, great with my summons and can cook. What else could I ask for?"

"Heh. I love you too, Kakashi."

**¥¥Y¥¥**

**A/N: It's weird to try and personalize each dog and their reactions, whilst remembering their names and their unique appearance. Brain hurts now. T_T**

**And I always wanted this to be the final long chapter scene because—how do I say this?—but I think Kakashi would fall completely in love with Iruka when he sees that Iruka accepts and is accepted in return by those dogs he cares about so much.**

**Last chapter, and then the epilogue. Man, time flies, it really does. **

**I'd really, really love a review for this chapter. :-)**


	12. Happy Ending

**A/N: Finally, the epilogue. Please enjoy!**

**Set a fair bit in the future of their relationship. I want to show a world where they're both happy.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine. I do own a lot of the merchandise though. ^-^**

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Kakashi liked to watch Iruka teach. It wasn't always entertaining, though the chuunin's class certainly had its moments. However, it reminded Kakashi that Iruka was alive, he was safe, and that he was happy. Lately he'd been having nightmares where Iruka was dead or dying and it set him on edge. That was partly his subconscious warning him of what could happen—the jounin had lost more than one special person before, and he wasn't keen on experiencing that sort of hurt again.

It certainly didn't help that he had actual memories of a bloodied and battered Iruka, fuelling his imagination in the weaker moments of his night. So Kakashi watched Iruka teach when he had the time and energy to remind himself that the risk was worth it. Seeing the brown-haired man laugh was worth everything and anything.

"Kishi, the reason you're now blue is because you set off a new prototype of mine, an exploding tag I've been working on, along with some of the Nara researchers. I'm glad you liked to test it out. When you try to emit chakra in my classroom without my authority, it'll dye your skin blue. Now you know that you _do not_ jutsu in my class unless I say so, okay?"

Iruka sounded so innocent, Kakashi was sure that he could trick anyone into anything. Sometimes he wondered whether that's how he got stuck with some of the more boring chores... It made his heart unclench that tiniest bit to hear his lover berate a student as usual. It meant life was normal. Well, as normal as a ninja could hope for.

Though, occasionally, Kakashi wondered what exactly made Iruka seem so _sure_. The younger man was so adamant about their relationship, not caring for the slander it sometimes brought, indifferent to the judgemental gaze of some elders.

Memory was enough to momentarily set Kakashi's chakra up and out of its controlled, muted state, flaring wildly and sharply before being repressed. A month and a few weeks after he'd moved into Iruka's apartment (because it was bigger and smelled like cookies), a councilman had the audacity to approach Iruka one day after class, unbeknownst that Kakashi was waiting outside, and berate him for supposedly 'brainwashing' the great Copy-Nin, taking away the chance of 'genius offspring' for the village.

Their relationship had been rather 'off-the-radar', but moving in together set the wheels of gossip in motion. Since all their close friends knew, along with the Hokage, they didn't particularly care much for the outbreak of their status. No one had enough balls to approach Kakashi, and Iruka was rather scary in his own way. This was the first outright confrontation to their relationship.

Whilst Iruka had nodded and blandly smiled, calm and uncaring of the smaller man's opinion, Kakashi had lithely leap into the room and casually draped his arm around the teacher in a territorial move. There was a kind of sick sense of pleasure of watching the council member blanch white at his appearance.

Iruka told him afterwards that, although Kakashi didn't yell, his voice was fucking terrifying and ice-cold. Normally that would have made Kakashi uncomfortable, but Iruka was laughing his ass off at the recalled events; the man had apologised profusely and run off, almost in tears, after the Copy-Nin had discussed how "his personal matters were not of the Council's concern".

It was unsurprising that they never heard from the Council after that, though the Hokage did see fit to have a few 'stern words', which really translated to sharing some alcohol with the pair in congratulations, telling them it was "about time the Council had gotten their heads out of their asses".

Umino Iruka was only human, but he was an amazing man. He didn't seem to give a shit of the threat it carried being the lover—and consequently, weak point—of one of the most dangerous men in the world.

The first assassination attempt came during the night, when Iruka was training by himself in one of the many fields open for that very purpose. Evidently, the attackers underestimated the strength and skill of a Leaf chuunin, because the pair were killed relatively easy—which, by ninja estimates translates to 'no back-up was needed and nothing huge was destroyed the in the process'.

Two others followed—one when Iruka was out of the village on a diplomacy mission—although both of the same calibre of the first, it discomforted Kakashi. Death and murder was nothing new to either of them, but it churned guilt in Kakashi that Iruka was being targeted for no other reason than loving their real target.

Irony was, if he was targeting another strong target, the jounin might have resorted to similar measures.

The Copy-Nin was not stupid enough to insult Iruka by telling him to back out of their coupling for his own safety. Perhaps it was also partly in selfishness that the older man wanted to keep the schoolteacher for himself, but the younger man was far from complaining about it.

Considering it was near the end of the school day, the last day of the official working week, Iruka was looking strangely vibrant, and not at all as haggard as some of the other teachers Kakashi had seen in the passing. You'd think the constant sex would make him more tired, Kakashi mused, but all it did was make him more energetic.

_Endorphins were a wonderful thing_. Stretching his arms while adjusting his seat in the tree, he passed the time by carving a heart with 'K + I' inside of it. Underneath, he added, 'Kinky + Intelligent'. One day Iruka would notice it and he'd either yell or kiss him senseless. While the latter was preferable, and the former more realistic to happen, they'd probably both take place if the Copy-Nin had anything to do with it.

The class were rowdy, Kakashi noted, as the old, battered clock on the wall was signalling that it was nearly time for their escape to temporary freedom. Iruka was studiously going through the finer points of poisons that can be made from plants readily found in most countries, especially the forest surrounding their village. Kakashi assumed the class was a little less chaotic than other classes, as it was working under the hinted threat that their teacher was looking for 'volunteers' on which to test his sample potions.

Evil came in many shapes and forms, but the jounin decided that he liked Iruka's design best.

"Oi, pervert!" Naruto was below his tree and his voice carried easily in the worst of circumstances. Before curious eyes from Iruka's class could catch his face from behind the leaves, Kakashi jumped down, barely catching Iruka's smile at his general direction.

"What is it, brat?" Kakashi walked towards Naruto, frowning though he wasn't mad. He always seemed to get called 'pervert' and since Naruto knew that he was dating his former teacher, it increased in use, but lessened in antagonism, which was something, he supposed.

No longer fit to be called a boy, still too young to be called a man, Naruto was surprisingly accepting after the initial shock of, "You're both guys..." In Iruka's kitchen, he had loudly declared that he blessed the union, so long as Kakashi never left Iruka. Or he'd release "the fox from his cage and hunt him down like a dog".

Unnervingly, the last bit was said with a grin, in a voice without real humour, so neither man could be sure whether the threat was entirely jest or not. Fortunately, Kakashi had no plans of leaving Iruka, and thus would never need to find out.

"I've just come back from a three-day long mission and the first thing you call me is _brat_?" Naruto scowled, crossing his arms. Dirt smeared his cheeks and his black-and-orange uniform was covered in splotches of dust. Mud crusted his open-toed sandals. From the looks of it, it was a basic delivery mission, C-rank; nothing to get worked up over.

"Since I don't see blood," Kakashi drawled, "then yeah, _brat_ is my appropriate response."

Sticking his tongue out, the blond continued in a long-suffering voice, "I was coming here to ask Iruka-sensei to an early dinner, but since _you_'re here already, you can come, too; if you want."

"If you're paying, then I'm all aboard," Kakashi replied cheerily. "I've wasted my wallet on your stomach far too many times to count."

Huffing, Naruto added, "So, you're not only a pervert, but a cheapskate, too. You're just _brimming_ with redeeming qualities, aren't you, Kakashi?"

Shrugged, Kakashi replied, "Iruka seems to think so."

"Bah," Naruto snorted, "that doesn't count. He's blinded by love."

"At least he's happy."

"He better be, for your sake."

"That I am, kiddo," agreed a voice from behind them.

Iruka walked out from behind the shadow of the tree, immediately receiving a loving tackle-hug from Naruto, who never seemed to grow out of that particular immaturity. Dusting the grass from his pants as he got up, the chuunin explained that he sent his class home early because Naruto's yells were a tad distracting. The blond at least had the decency to look abashed.

"Don't worry, Naruto," consoled Kakashi with a hidden, feral grin. "I've done worse. There was this one lunchtime in the spring when I caught the good man off-guard, and on the desk we—"

"DO NOT NEED TO HEAR!" yelled Naruto, fingers in ears, humming loudly, eyes shut, as if sensory deprivation would save him from the mental images.

Laughing lightly, Iruka entwined his fingers with Kakashi's as they walked to the main streets to choose a restaurant. "Should we tell him that we honestly only did paperwork on the desk, or torture him a bit?"

"Ahh, let him stew a bit. After all, ninja should never jump to conclusions."

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**A/N: The story has come to a close. I want to thank every reader, reviewer and lurker who has accompanied me in the making of this little story. For what is the point of any literature is there is no one to read it? ^3^**

**For the last time, I ask for a review. Though whether you leave one is entirely optional. ;-)**

"_**Easy reading is damn hard writing**_**"—Nathaniel Hawthorne.**


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